tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83472532024-03-29T08:33:54.122-05:00The Time for ChangeA girl in the worldNGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.comBlogger3172125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-17660297752912061932024-03-29T05:00:00.007-05:002024-03-29T05:00:00.159-05:00Five for Friday: Work Things<p>1) I keep a document at work where every day I document what my "big" projects were during the day. For example, on March 7, I met with students on probation/warning and worked with a student who is returning after a long time out of school (she started when in 1997! her last semester was 2002!) to figure out her fastest route to graduation. Today I was frantically trying to figure out what I did all day and it seemed like the answer might be "a whole lot of nothing," but looking at my sent folder in email, it turns out that I spent the day emailing people questions. </p><p>I don't share this document with anyone, but if my boss asks what projects I've been working on, I can consult it. Do you keep a document like this or am I just desperately trying to justify my position?</p><p>2) Because of (incredibly boring) work reasons, I recently pulled out my college transcript, which I have handy because I was on the job market for a long time. I saw this</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-NdmfvKH6SogqD6GfV6RCc-1alA10-5PdKz32eftUbD4YaSDYrMahFucM96Rz_TjTSb0hLlkQdaOkU434R74kYby9lgBwbdQ0b3Rik1K0FTS-Wg3Hqod9WS2saLR8kD76xiMGkVjztBMJnTjp7JpsekNG0GdT5QYXs-OCAfhR1o2dSD9M2DWxfA/s766/get%20hepped.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="229" data-original-width="766" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-NdmfvKH6SogqD6GfV6RCc-1alA10-5PdKz32eftUbD4YaSDYrMahFucM96Rz_TjTSb0hLlkQdaOkU434R74kYby9lgBwbdQ0b3Rik1K0FTS-Wg3Hqod9WS2saLR8kD76xiMGkVjztBMJnTjp7JpsekNG0GdT5QYXs-OCAfhR1o2dSD9M2DWxfA/w640-h192/get%20hepped.PNG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>and got all hepped up all over again from grudges from the 1990s. I graduated from college with a GPA of 3.97 and the first two things you see on my undergrad transcript are a B (the only one I ever got in college) and a remedial English course. You GUYS. It's been more than a quarter of a century and I'm still livid. They couldn't have buried that B in amongst the As somewhere? The guy who taught that econ class STILL TEACHES AT MY ALMA MATER. </p><p>If you went to college, take a look at your transcript. It's a fun trip down memory lane. Also, I have some questions. I did an internship the summer of 1999 at then-U.S. Senator Mike DeWine's district office in Toledo and it ended up on my transcript as COOP 50 for ZERO credits with a grade of "S." Why even bother putting that on there?! I have so many questions. My program didn't require an internship and I did another internship in DC in the fall of 2000, so what was going on here? WHY?</p><p>3) I have a number of tchotchkes in my office. People buy me stuff and there's no place to put it in our house since I'm forbidden from putting things in the <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/01/326-moment-memories-live-here.html">curio cabinet</a>. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR6BwW6BMA8rW1lijGJ_k3MyeX3eorbYhrMIAunCMA228q2pU2ixvaG-JlzEpY7lQe1YEDgjZfFuEp0-Z2cGVXKd3KBg-UumKn9Mj21x7KP1USfEmt-lvxXT0kB3kGtYIWpBKCYQ8TontsG8K-A4wswiHcma-_YkGWCrPE-cWIJlbzSXdVGBVZ7A/s4032/20240320_151346.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR6BwW6BMA8rW1lijGJ_k3MyeX3eorbYhrMIAunCMA228q2pU2ixvaG-JlzEpY7lQe1YEDgjZfFuEp0-Z2cGVXKd3KBg-UumKn9Mj21x7KP1USfEmt-lvxXT0kB3kGtYIWpBKCYQ8TontsG8K-A4wswiHcma-_YkGWCrPE-cWIJlbzSXdVGBVZ7A/w640-h480/20240320_151346.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>Why did Bestest Friend send me a green boot? I don't know, but I have an odd affection for it. </p><p>Anyway, I bring this up because about a decade ago Bestest Friend sent me a weird <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2014/11/619-my-best-friend-chickens.html">ceramic chicken</a>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifdfqrFyYQRV7aX0w4sPBu9myyhOP5NQP93dZrs94jQpNXKyY97OzFkddgJFZddX8llh0OFhI7Tj4FjibTJI614sDzsdmh4b5mLSEff7leBYUcNNZ_R30-9iEiY5Zvhh_OzAJyyWNda9zOQRORBvar4D-BOGwiPWbcijPm-Nag5ZATDSdQ-Dfovw/s1600/best%20friend%20chicken%20nov%202014%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1069" data-original-width="1600" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifdfqrFyYQRV7aX0w4sPBu9myyhOP5NQP93dZrs94jQpNXKyY97OzFkddgJFZddX8llh0OFhI7Tj4FjibTJI614sDzsdmh4b5mLSEff7leBYUcNNZ_R30-9iEiY5Zvhh_OzAJyyWNda9zOQRORBvar4D-BOGwiPWbcijPm-Nag5ZATDSdQ-Dfovw/w640-h428/best%20friend%20chicken%20nov%202014%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>I thought it would be with all the other work tchotchkes, but I can not find my chicken and I'm heartbroken about the whole thing. My office is missing an element of insanity without this chicken.</p><p>4) For a variety of reasons (*ahem* the enrollment and demand <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/opinion/views/2023/10/16/managing-other-enrollment-cliff-opinion">cliffs</a> *ahem*), our university has been reaching out to students who have some college credits, but <a href="https://nscresearchcenter.org/some-college-no-credential/#:~:text=Annual%20Progress%20Report%20%E2%80%93%20Academic%20Year%202021%2F22&text=As%20of%20July%202021%2C%20the,outs)%20drove%20this%20large%20growth.">did not earn a degree</a> at our institution. This is a population of great concern because these students frequently have a fair amount of debt related to education, but without a degree, their economic mobility can be limited. As part of my job, I sometimes talk to these potential students to help them figure out what the fastest path is for them to graduate.</p><p>I've been working with a woman who needs 2-3 credits in a work experience to complete her minor to graduate. That's it. That's what she needs. But she doesn't want to do the work experience and so she's considering changing her minor entirely to avoid doing the work experience. But a new minor would be at least 12 credits, if not more!! WHY?!?!</p><p>5) I recently had a milestone anniversary at my current employer (ten years) and went to a program to celebrate it. (Look, my boss was celebrating her 25th anniversary and that's why I really went. She would have been IRATE if her crew wasn't there and I know this about her. She said "oh, no worries if you can't go," but what she meant was "you better be there and I better hear you screaming for me." I am nothing if not an astute judge of character.*) ANYWAY. The event was streamed and one of my friends was home sick that day and she sent me a screenshot of me and I laughed and laughed. Why am I walking like that? Sole first? What a weirdo.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAD3ScCRks3TbeK6WzMUT1MwSyQTxosF_i-_4Q1R0anvBGUGP6p-XhTX2p0olzMO23IvcGpmApmHpr82NXDnWVnkLJg-9iAe8PDYQJW-lBgev7bQr2jGrqsfOGK9l2gCx5UlyKwI6EL8nWF0LStL_6aUaK5PYmiD5Dod9M-cZtHG9JbdLnX_6UYw/s439/March%2019%202024%20ceremony.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="358" data-original-width="439" height="522" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAD3ScCRks3TbeK6WzMUT1MwSyQTxosF_i-_4Q1R0anvBGUGP6p-XhTX2p0olzMO23IvcGpmApmHpr82NXDnWVnkLJg-9iAe8PDYQJW-lBgev7bQr2jGrqsfOGK9l2gCx5UlyKwI6EL8nWF0LStL_6aUaK5PYmiD5Dod9M-cZtHG9JbdLnX_6UYw/w640-h522/March%2019%202024%20ceremony.png" width="640" /></a></div><p>*This is patently false, you all know this, right? I am absolutely oblivious to about 80% of social cues and customs and sometimes think I'm a robot. But I do know my boss well enough to know she likes to be celebrated. And since I like to celebrate, who am I to not go to a celebratory event?</p><p>************************</p><p>Do you have knickknacks in your office? Do you have a favorite one? Do you have a college or high school transcript that you have questions about?</p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-91727576534666615252024-03-28T05:00:00.002-05:002024-03-28T05:00:00.132-05:00Heartaches by the Numbers by Bill Friskics-Warren and David Cantwell<p>How did <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/551473.Heartaches_by_the_Number">Heartaches by the Numbers: Country Music's 500 Greatest Singles</a></i> by Bill Friskics-Warren and David Cantwell come on my radar? I honestly thought it was that I heard about it on a podcast, but I can't figure out which podcast, so...it will forever be a mystery, I guess. But I had to work pretty hard to find it, including a World Cat search at the university library that a reference librarian had to walk me through. GO LIBRIARIANS!! </p><p>Also, before we go any further, yes, yes, I did make a <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2ZS64km1TyD1dmojSVi5jY?si=a36751d444854e03">playlist</a> of the 500* songs and the 100 bonus songs at the end. You're welcome. It's over 24 hours long. Enjoy.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdNOBh5w3XYillPW2-EGGFWvH9Hx7T7fwvGygrLar0CY9Wa_QJbL5TdCtsf1u_EeVaFhC_W_qhPE13RA5wBplqxQSvhPkFQ9cy3qwFDmpDlO7Z-RiastqjNZGZcjeqqKGL6UTPVgEF3ZlwDXZFt19KJWHquAEJS7sT4t1e8Qunv7hqvHpbQ5Lp2A/s400/heartaches%20by%20the%20numbers.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="309" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdNOBh5w3XYillPW2-EGGFWvH9Hx7T7fwvGygrLar0CY9Wa_QJbL5TdCtsf1u_EeVaFhC_W_qhPE13RA5wBplqxQSvhPkFQ9cy3qwFDmpDlO7Z-RiastqjNZGZcjeqqKGL6UTPVgEF3ZlwDXZFt19KJWHquAEJS7sT4t1e8Qunv7hqvHpbQ5Lp2A/w494-h640/heartaches%20by%20the%20numbers.jpg" width="494" /></a></div><br /><p>So, of course I was going to quibble with the 500 songs chosen (Faith Hill gets a song, but there's not a single Alabama song? puh-leeze), but I have bigger gripes with this book. I'm going to lay out my three largest gripes here and you can tell me all about what a persnickety pendant I am. </p><p>1) First, I'd like to say that I try not to gatekeep what is and what is not country music. I don't love the current influx of rap/hip-hop contributions to contemporary country music, but that doesn't stop it from being country music. But Cantwell and Friskies-Warren do not even attempt to define what country music is, so it's hard to know what songs were and were not considered for this list. </p><p>We're not interested in defining country music so much as in engaging the tradition, in tracing country's shifting fence lines to understand where the music, in all its manifestations, has been and where it's going. That isn't to say that the music doesn't have certain defining features, such as its rural, southern, working-class roots, or a penchant for certain stringed instruments or harmony patterns. Or that we thinking everything is or can be construed as country. More than anything else, it's the tradition of the people making records perceive themselves working out of, or the roots or influences they acknowledge, or just the affinities they display that make their records country. (page xi)</p><p>While I wholeheartedly appreciate the urge the authors have to be inclusive, I also am a bit annoyed that they never actually list out themes or instruments that are necessary/desirable to be classified as country. I ended up creating my own sort of definition, but it's very squirrely and I struggle with the line between country and the following genres: rock, folk, gospel, jazz, western swing, and probably several others. </p><p>2) Okay, so if these guys aren't going to define country, maybe they'll talk about why they included each of these songs in the list? Maybe talk about how the song connects to these themes/instrumentations or maybe write about how it talks to other songs in the country tradition? Now, to be fair, some of the entries do that. But here's the entire entry for Brenda Lee's "I'm Sorry" (which went to #1 on the pop charts for three weeks in 1960):</p><p>"Little Miss Dynamite" begs, Owen Bradley's strings leak tears down around her, and though decades come and go, nothing changes. Brenda Lee says she's sorry over and over and over - despite the fact that the lover she's hurt has already forgiven her. "You say mistakes are part of being young/but that don't right the wrong that's been done," she responds before apologizing yet again. It makes you wonder - just how many years will have to pass before she forgives <i>herself</i>? - dc (page 108-109)</p><p>But why is it on this list? There are strings, but there are strings in Beethoven's string quartets and no one is calling them country music. This was a pop hit! I just don't understand. At this rate, we can call Britney's "Lucky" a country song. I just need a little bit of guidance about why each of these songs is a great single in <i>country</i> music. </p><p>3) The other thing is that the organization of this book is a mess. It's not in chronological, thematic, or alphabetical order. Is it the order of importance? If so, please excuse me while I suggest that "Help Me Make It Through the Night" by Sammi Smith (the first song in the book) is NOT the most influential country song in the pantheon. It's a good song, but is it great? What's with this order? </p><p>(Their reasoning probably has something to do with this line: A crossover smash, "Help Me Make It Through the Night" signaled country's belated arrival in the rock and soul era. - page 1)</p><p>So, I liked reading this book and I learned a lot and now I have a playlist that I'll listen to forever and ever (amen), but it wasn't exactly what I wanted. (No Alabama, Brooks and Dunn, or Toby Keith is suspicious, too.)</p><p>3/5 stars</p><p>*There were a handful of songs where I couldn't find the song by the same artist and I subbed in the song for a different artist. There were two or three songs I couldn't find on Spotify at all. There are many songs that I couldn't find the exact single (the year, producer), but I did the best I could. The Garth Brooks songs are all live versions because he doesn't allow Spotify to use his work. It's complicated, but it's as close as I could get. </p><p>*****************</p><p><b>Lines of note:</b></p><p><b>Notes on women in country music:</b></p><p>"Stand by Your Man" could well be the most controversial record in the history of country music. It certainly caused a stir when it came out during the late sixties, a time when the women's movement was gaining strength and both the Roe v. Wade decision and the battle over the Equal Rights Amendment loomed on the horizon. Feminists decried the record as a prescription for female slavery while the religious right hailed it as a recipe for becoming the "total woman" - that is, a woman totally subordinate to her husband. (page 8)</p><p>Wait...I'm over here realizing for the first time that a lot of people don't think this song is mostly just about how hard marriage is. It's not about being a doormat or a total woman - it's about the challenges of a long-term relationship. What weirdos on either side making the song more extreme than it is. </p><p>Re: "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" by Kitty Wells</p><p>Wells gave little thought to these sorts of musicological and sociological considerations when "Honky Tonk Angels" was making its way up the charts. From her perspective, the single's success just meant she was going to work outside the home, and therein lies yet another reason "Angels" was such a pivotal record. More than just tapping the malaise felt by many of the era's women, Wells's breakthrough hit helped open the doors of Nashville's recording studios to dozens, perhaps hundreds, of female singers. (Despite the fact that Patsy Montana's "I Wanna Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart" was rumored to have moved a million units back in 1935, postwar country execs didn't think women could sell records - that is, until "Honky Tonk Angels" reportedly sold 800,000 copies.) (page 10)</p><p>I almost died at the the authors' own sexism here by putting that parenthetical there. So much sexism inherent in this book, published in 2003. </p><p>All of which is to say that "Independence Day" [by Martina McBride] rocks harder than "Goodbye Earl" [by The Chicks] in every possible way. And, for once, diva-wannabe Martina McBride finds a subject that's the perfect emotional match for her vocal fireworks. (page 41)</p><p>Speaking of sexism, let's all take a beat and realize that while "Independence Day" and "Goodbye Earl" deal with similar themes, they do not need to be in competition with one another. They're both great songs. What kind of setting up a catfight is this BS?</p><p>Re: "One's on the Way" by Loretta Lynn</p><p>Bruce Springsteen might have had "One's on the Way" in mind when he sang, "we learned more from a three-minute record, baby, then we ever learned in school." Lynn's single clocks in a two minutes and thirty-seven seconds, but it's hard to imagine a roomful of sociologists saying as much about class and gender as she does here. (page 66)</p><p>Loretta's got "One's on the Way," "The Pill," "Rated X," and "Fist City." She courted controversy long before The Chicks came along and there's something deeply admirable about it. </p><p><b>Notes on the pervasive racism in country music:</b></p><p>African American country singer Cleve Francis, alluding to the racism that's pervaded the industry since its inception, observed, "You can't shake the tree and in seventy-five years have only one black man fall out who can sing country music."</p><p>Francis, of course, was referring to Country Music Hall of Famer Charley Pride, one of Nashville's best-selling artists during the sixties and seventies. Oklahoma-born Stoney Edwards is a distant second to Pride among black country singers, charting a mere fifteen singles from 1971 to 1980, only two of which reached the Top Twenty. (page 29)</p><p>I call myself a country fan and I'd never heard of Stoney Edwards before. That's dispiriting. Darius Rucker has broken Edwards's record with six solo number ones. </p><p>You might not know it from reading most histories of the music, but DeFord Bailey, and not Charley Pride, was the first black star in country music. "The Harmonica Wizard" had been a hit on the Grand Ole Opry a good ten years before Pride was born...Bailey's fifteen-year tenure on the Opry, however, was a conflicted on. He was among the show's best-loved performers; one year he appeared on forty-nine broadcasts, at least twice as many as any of the Opry's other regulars. Yet the Opry brass also dubbed him the show's "mascot," an epithet that implied he was less than a full member of the cast, if not somehow less than human. Then there were the circumstances surrounding his firing form the show in 1941, an incident that might very well have been racially motivated. Bitter and disillusioned, Bailey went back to shining shoes for a living and rarely performed in public again. (page 63)</p><p>Ditto not having heard of DeFord Bailey before. I should brush up on my Opry history, obviously. </p><p><b>Things I learned/looked up:</b></p><p>Hank Williams's "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" was in the Top Ten the very week he died and then it climbed to #1. Is this awesome or tragic? (page 19)</p><p>Jim Reeves was internationally popular and had a crazy backlog of songs. Thirty-five of his singles charted <i>after</i> he died in a plane crash in 1964! </p><p>The first Christmas record believed to have been recorded was a barbershop version of "Silent Night" by the Hayden Quartet in 1902. (page 126)</p><p>Crystal Gayle and Loretta Lynn were sisters!!! (page 210)</p><p><b>Hat mentions:</b></p><p>Four cowboy hats, a hat-act, a Stetson hat, Gene Autry's white hat. I would have predicted the hat total to be more than seven when I started reading this book. </p><p>*****************</p><p>This book was published in 2003, so it's interesting to think about what songs from the 20 years would have been added to this book. Surely "Old Town Road"? "Wagon Wheel" or "Come Back Song" by Darius Rucker? "Whiskey Lullaby" by Brad Paisley"? "Life Ain't Always Beautiful" by Gary Allan? "Stay" by Sugarland? "Follow Your Arrow" by Kacey Musgraves? "Drunk on a Plane" by Dierks Bentley? (Okay, fine, I just want a Dierks song on there.)</p><p>I don't know. What a country song from the last two decades you think will last the test of time?</p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-48217546008124992932024-03-27T05:00:00.010-05:002024-03-27T05:00:00.130-05:00Is It Possible to be an Ethical Consumer?<p>Someone asked me in the comments once to write about my attempts to buy ethical fashion. I, of course, am not organized to write down WHO asked for this or WHEN, but someone did. Here's my attempt to make sense of a disorganized system.</p><p>*******************<br />I'm about to spoil <i>The Good Place</i>, a television show that's last season was four years ago. If you don't want to hear what I have to say about it, don't read any further. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAlwpPDqDSehe_W5vHtYM79fmgSevfrvIkyWOVsn-G2TrsaNQBeBmLUVy_pNfqibyML9uj1P9vPh7T3duw3yXRl_2EkmFoSw6ImhhRRmRKf7nC0KEBWB8qdbpDzFwGboi_QzQxDlvfr-ZM7gyebwxyZcKrSMXAv7bO3kNMDjGGKfz2Iw1WQ0wioQ/s4032/20240324_132331.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAlwpPDqDSehe_W5vHtYM79fmgSevfrvIkyWOVsn-G2TrsaNQBeBmLUVy_pNfqibyML9uj1P9vPh7T3duw3yXRl_2EkmFoSw6ImhhRRmRKf7nC0KEBWB8qdbpDzFwGboi_QzQxDlvfr-ZM7gyebwxyZcKrSMXAv7bO3kNMDjGGKfz2Iw1WQ0wioQ/w480-h640/20240324_132331.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Random photo of Zelda just so people don't get accidental spoilers.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>Basically, it turns out in the show that no one has gotten into The Good Place for centuries because there is no way to live morally in our modern society. Now, the show then goes forward and shows that people can develop morally in the afterlife, blah, blah, blah, but since I don't believe in the afterlife, the part about not being able to live ethically in this modern world has really stuck with me. Is there a way to live morally? </p><p>It honestly feels like I have done nothing but destroy this planet <i>since the moment I have been born</i>. So this is the kind of thing I think about when I make any type of decision.</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Is having a housecat morally defensible? I mean, she's cared for, but would her life be better if she had freedom? If I let her outside, she will destroy wildlife, so that's not ideal, either.</li><li>Is eating these grapes from Mexico worth it? Were the people who harvested the grapes treated well? Were the transportation costs/environmental impact worth it?</li><li>Is reading Harry Potter again ethically problematic? </li><li>Is buying X, Y, or Z sustainable? </li><li>Should I drive my car to work or try to ride my bicycle? Will the change to the environment be worth all the hassle for me?</li><li>If I buy a new piece of technology, what rare mineral has been mined in a dangerous way?</li></ul>So, as you can imagine, every decision is fraught in our house, especially new purchases. I have mentioned that I try to buy ethical fashion, but what does that mean? It's complicated.<p></p><p>There are a lot of ways to think of something as being "ethical." I focus mostly on human labor and environmental impacts. Your criteria might differ wildly from mine.</p><p><b>Human Labor</b></p><p>In 2013, a fast fashion factory collapsed in Bangladesh, killing over 1000 people. It was at this point that I started paying attention to what I was buying in stores and started asking myself the following questions.</p><p></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Are garment workers working in safe, humane conditions?</li><li>Are garment workers being paid a living wage?</li><li>Are garment workers allowed to unionize?</li><li>Is child labor used?</li></ul><p></p><p><b>Environment</b></p><p>There is pervasive greenwashing being done by companies out there. Greenwashing is when organizations (this can be companies, brands, governments, or any organization) pretend their practices are more sustainable or eco-friendly than they are. </p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Does the company use sustainable fabrics? I've linked to this very photo before, but clothes with a lot of plastic in them do not decompose. But there are drawbacks to natural fibers, as well. Bamboo/viscose create acid waste and are energy intensive. Hemp and linen can be okay, but you need to know how they are dyed, how they are grown, and how they are processed to have a complete idea on the environmental impact. Cotton uses a lot of water. Wool needs a lot of land and there are concerns about the treatment of sheep, from the controversial mulesing to poor treatment during shearing. But all fabrics containing plastics will eventually become microplastics. </li><li><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih9uqH278yPOe5WEL04bIe6JsntIBL5auTx2GoMcZY456bMNYWcZZZJN8zCOuXQo9rHIj_FwOscDdl49oDFuNJoLEMpiHFXeLBwYbi-9pKBe8sqW_IeFrupnFzo04NRpxOgIgXaR2T5sllKggoh-H6imTxtPxfO-IIrtsNR0NdtDCtvsgBDMJCbg/s1440/permacoach.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1440" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih9uqH278yPOe5WEL04bIe6JsntIBL5auTx2GoMcZY456bMNYWcZZZJN8zCOuXQo9rHIj_FwOscDdl49oDFuNJoLEMpiHFXeLBwYbi-9pKBe8sqW_IeFrupnFzo04NRpxOgIgXaR2T5sllKggoh-H6imTxtPxfO-IIrtsNR0NdtDCtvsgBDMJCbg/w640-h640/permacoach.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Permacoach/posts/1045325975923555">Permacoach</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></li><li>Does the company have transparent information about product durability, waste, water usage, and its overall carbon footprint?</li><li>What does the company do with its excess stock? </li></ul><p></p><p>Consider my favorite punching bag, Boden. Boden makes adorable clothing! I have a Boden dress that I wear a lot and love. They make very big claims on their website.<br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe0uRxRrZTkWmh4un-Um5h4VWAChInWP9s1fTk1Sqfur_czAh8Rsx_0aNnCvCX1nfuFxdZGdwlqPpVRlK4P0h7mHrfGHab8qf0IKG3MY9A9S9KerNhu4G93d-NJGJ0d1fXbklf4jKOF4l7RVSYhuDQjKpVqyOvoTe2ywyQVOft6PfM3nlSVQ43xQ/s1884/boden.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="657" data-original-width="1884" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe0uRxRrZTkWmh4un-Um5h4VWAChInWP9s1fTk1Sqfur_czAh8Rsx_0aNnCvCX1nfuFxdZGdwlqPpVRlK4P0h7mHrfGHab8qf0IKG3MY9A9S9KerNhu4G93d-NJGJ0d1fXbklf4jKOF4l7RVSYhuDQjKpVqyOvoTe2ywyQVOft6PfM3nlSVQ43xQ/w640-h224/boden.PNG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.bodenusa.com/en-us/sustainability#desktopscrollprompt">Source</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzqr8JL17f4g_UeWLjmkB8Fn9Tb502_q40b6jEyBIP82l9nu89qEQajfgV_XAvRDF7wN2hLIdthb6mehmCM-mCiopUVCjNs-UMwTbOFZc8FgMSs8PxaeygDdneZGJakw-mgkPlp6oiNzXd5iq5Hw8ByqySjJQPI6iyvzUAdGQ2_rYvo9Vh6ygJ3w/s1549/boden%202.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="742" data-original-width="1549" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzqr8JL17f4g_UeWLjmkB8Fn9Tb502_q40b6jEyBIP82l9nu89qEQajfgV_XAvRDF7wN2hLIdthb6mehmCM-mCiopUVCjNs-UMwTbOFZc8FgMSs8PxaeygDdneZGJakw-mgkPlp6oiNzXd5iq5Hw8ByqySjJQPI6iyvzUAdGQ2_rYvo9Vh6ygJ3w/w640-h306/boden%202.PNG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.bodenusa.com/en-us/sustainability-mission?intid=D06_Sustainability_Hub_CB3">Source</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>This messaging is exactly why I bought from Boden. But then I started looking at sites that evaluate brands for sustainability and learned that Boden talks a big talk, but doesn't actually follow through. Boden's <a href="https://directory.goodonyou.eco/brand/boden">Good on You</a> rating does not reflect any of their claims. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZKMs8qLa6gI9jLnKP4_PSzERLRDqcDMyhNhieUr6gEsoR960xVpSJdzelyeB-qvSZjiqBosILTCIYJON0bdYe_PZwClfjDvf8QMs0xOgYtsS_go054dfn3zbyjiMnZ1RKLmwEqzOQiZqqo7Hrm9Kgwz_te_Cx_rsvBvk0uXMzebrMHvuOISBWVQ/s813/boden%203.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="813" height="566" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZKMs8qLa6gI9jLnKP4_PSzERLRDqcDMyhNhieUr6gEsoR960xVpSJdzelyeB-qvSZjiqBosILTCIYJON0bdYe_PZwClfjDvf8QMs0xOgYtsS_go054dfn3zbyjiMnZ1RKLmwEqzOQiZqqo7Hrm9Kgwz_te_Cx_rsvBvk0uXMzebrMHvuOISBWVQ/w640-h566/boden%203.PNG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://directory.goodonyou.eco/brand/boden">Source.</a> </td></tr></tbody></table><div><p><br /></p><p>Here are some brands I own a fair amount of:</p><p><b>Mata Traders</b>: I get a lot of dresses from this brand because their rating is pretty good, their prices are okay ($$ out of $$$$), they have a selection of dresses that use natural fabrics, and they have pockets in a lot of their dresses.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdkIirz6cDgKuicenFWEr35Bx4db9_8WmY-JzWSapi77fagXTtIYlQMTlW7o-V_K-rgRUpyMY7-sjqYts6BMTIisehLVkPzuVFlEctu4D8xOVoQKY3REQsALyGErnufhvuv2f11i2HnPTpZQMETkvBRo4UUpYbrrJ8uMPqyFLwOgAYt__Pro3aDQ/s803/mata.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="724" data-original-width="803" height="578" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdkIirz6cDgKuicenFWEr35Bx4db9_8WmY-JzWSapi77fagXTtIYlQMTlW7o-V_K-rgRUpyMY7-sjqYts6BMTIisehLVkPzuVFlEctu4D8xOVoQKY3REQsALyGErnufhvuv2f11i2HnPTpZQMETkvBRo4UUpYbrrJ8uMPqyFLwOgAYt__Pro3aDQ/w640-h578/mata.PNG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://directory.goodonyou.eco/brand/mata-traders">Source</a>. </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p><b>Duluth Trading Company:</b> I buy my leggings from Duluth because they are the only ones I can find that have pockets and are made of cotton with no additional man-made fabric. Does that justify me ignoring the rating that shows this is not a great company? </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSFLBnnStwOVGlbx4zDhUiYloNWmFq2AUpYLf3F4sfQP_5dHUiH1gPi5uKH-9pgrQ57trz4m2ABpLZbY-EH0LIB0As6IJNks9FNHXKDOf3H_DkQ5txOCf0bUW4zIowtN-PKPjjsazKbBbFVqn9WsrgZxq7b17zICHhgTdvau9Bdb0ClGculS5Zdg/s744/duluth.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="483" data-original-width="744" height="416" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSFLBnnStwOVGlbx4zDhUiYloNWmFq2AUpYLf3F4sfQP_5dHUiH1gPi5uKH-9pgrQ57trz4m2ABpLZbY-EH0LIB0As6IJNks9FNHXKDOf3H_DkQ5txOCf0bUW4zIowtN-PKPjjsazKbBbFVqn9WsrgZxq7b17zICHhgTdvau9Bdb0ClGculS5Zdg/w640-h416/duluth.PNG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://directory.goodonyou.eco/brand/duluth-trading">Source</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">There are places where I can not find a brand that meet even the most basic of ethical standards - think athletic shoes and sports bras - for those I have to just do my best. I usually decide humans > Mother Earth and look for things that were made in a NAFTA or European country. That's obviously not a 100% tried and true method of proving that things weren't made in <a href="https://www.dailynews.com/2023/03/28/some-southern-california-sweatshop-garment-workers-paid-as-little-as-1-58-an-hour-says-report/">sweatshop</a>, but it's easier for me to feel good about something made in Italy than something made in India, China, or Bangladesh. (I mean, it's tough, right, because those people working in sweatshops in developing nations need jobs, too. There doesn't seem to be a good way to do this and hopefully you, dear reader, can read me gnashing my teeth at this.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Second-hand shopping</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So, why don't you just go to second-hand stores and thrift? Good question. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Most of the stores in my immediate area are full of items from Walmart, Target, and Old Navy. I am unlikely to buy those items and, if I do, they're likely to fall apart after I wash them a handful of times. I could drive an hour or so in any direction and get to "better" thrift stores, but I'm not pumped about doing that during my limited time off (since it's not "fun" for me) and I'm not thrilled about using endless amounts of gasoline to do so.</li><li>Second-hand shops are part of the problem, to be honest. (EVERYTHING IS.) The demand in second-hand goods is increasing and that's causing an increase in prices at thrift stores, which means the costs are out of the range of people who can afford them, namely low-income folks. The last time I was in my local Goodwill, there was a Target shirt with clearance tag marked under $7 and the Goodwill was charging more than that. For a shirt from Target! But, more importantly, much of the clothing that is donated goes straight to the landfill or is even <a href="https://www.eco-business.com/news/explainer-why-fast-fashion-brands-destroy-unsold-clothes/">burned</a> (creating even more pollution!) or is sent overseas. </li></ul></div><br /></div><div>The only real way to be an ethical consumer is to stop consuming. In the reuse, reduce, recycle phrase, there's nothing about re-buying.</div><div><br /></div><div>But is that an option? Can I keep wearing the same eight dresses for the rest of my life? Of course not. I live in these United States and have a professional job. I need to dress the part and cannot keep wearing the same old beat up clothing for decades and decades. </div><div><br /></div><div>Also, the thing is that the individual choices <i>I</i> make won't make an impact on the world. I am not a huge corporation. My decision to buy a dress or a new cell phone won't reverse global warming. But, in a familiar refrain you'll hear from me when I talk about things like watching the <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/01/podcast-roundup-january-2024.html">NFL</a>, I think that while my individual buying patterns won't change anything, if most of us starting being more mindful of our buying practices, then those big companies would have to make changes. </div><div><br /></div><div>*******************</div><div>Okay, bottom line. What do I do?</div><div><br /></div><div>1) I try not to buy a lot. I'm purposeful about what I buy. I wear things for a long time.</div><div>2) If I do buy, I try to use something with a good rating from <a href="https://directory.goodonyou.eco/search/lululemon">Good on You</a>.</div><div>3) If I can't find something on Good on You (or I can't afford it), I dig into what makes the rating low on that site. If it's a negative on human labor, I will probably dip out. If it's a negative on Mother Earth, eh, I'll probably let it slide. Does it feel crappy to write that out? Yes, yes, it does.</div><div>4) If I can't find out anything, I'll look at where it was made. Canada or the UK? I'll probably give it a go. China or Vietnam? I'll probably try to find something else.</div><div><br /></div><div>*******************</div><div>It's not perfect, obviously. I still have some guilt about the sports bra I bought from Athleta. But unless I am able to grow and weave my own fibers, sew my own garments, and ensure a 100% sustainable process, this is where I am at.</div><div><br /></div><div>*******************</div><div><br /></div><div>Do you agonize over every clothing purchase you make? Are you wearing anything right now that you've owned for more than five years?</div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-7233361576483912682024-03-26T05:00:00.002-05:002024-03-26T05:00:00.144-05:0010 Things That Never Happened (Material World #1) by Alexis Hall<p>Alexis Hall is the reigning royal of queer romance. I read <i>Boyfriend Material</i> in 2020 and loved it, but there wasn't any other Hall in my library collection. I recently rechecked and there are quite a few Hall books now available via ebook, so I downloaded <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/83137176-10-things-that-never-happened">10 Things That I Never Wanted</a></i> and dove in.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho6CohcGLswHNF5HSEIcbkpX-jS9rRA65TGP99REMhoHGy43be8veI3pZw2UdGrAs2j7twhuqnCCk3cvzOxNbuC0M10bp5o4zJg8WAgCr_eaNSMEJLxayjZy_cDuk8rtkaatB_3IUnokpHdPBGYrR6Opvq6nheRCzArN6skp9wwWY_VjnZxl3bmA/s828/83137176.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="828" data-original-width="555" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho6CohcGLswHNF5HSEIcbkpX-jS9rRA65TGP99REMhoHGy43be8veI3pZw2UdGrAs2j7twhuqnCCk3cvzOxNbuC0M10bp5o4zJg8WAgCr_eaNSMEJLxayjZy_cDuk8rtkaatB_3IUnokpHdPBGYrR6Opvq6nheRCzArN6skp9wwWY_VjnZxl3bmA/w428-h640/83137176.jpg" width="428" /></a></div>Samwise (he goes by Sam) has a terrible boss, Jonathan. But after a workplace accident leaves Jonathan believing Sam has amnesia, Sam is suddenly living at Jonathan's huge house. Jonathan is a jerk. Sam's always calling him out on it. What do you think is going to happen here?<p><b>Interesting characters:</b> Sam is great. Jonathan is a jerk. If you like your love interest to be a jerk, maybe you'll like Jonathan. I still don't understand WHY Jonathan is a jerk. He has a great family, has had a pretty successful career, and seems conventionally attractive. Sure, his family didn't have a ton of money when he was growing up, but whose did? Maybe because I didn't understand his motivations, I just couldn't get on board with him.</p><p><b>Believable conflict:</b> Sure, nice people typically don't immediately fall in love with jerks, right?</p><p><b>Emotional tension:</b> The amnesia storyline was cheesy and Hall was really counting on that to make us wonder what was going to happen when Jonathan finally learned the truth. I mean, if that's your deal, sure.</p><p><b>Happily ever after: </b>Eh. I mean, sure. Sam seems like he's in a good place. But now he's dating a jerk. </p><p>Sam is so great. He's a wonderful character. But I don't think I can recommend this book. 3/5 stars</p><p><b>Lines of note:</b></p><div>
<p>Because there’s something about fast food chicken places that mean you have to have a corn on the cob, just like you have to have candy canes at Christmas. (location 566)</p><p>Are there a lot of fast food chicken places that serve corn on the cob? Is this a UK-specific thing about fast food chicken places? Or is it common in the US, too? KFC just has whole kernel corn, right? Not on the cob? Tell me, gurus of fast food chicken!!</p><div>
<p>I’m sure there is, somewhere in the world, a man who drives a BMW and is not a bellend but I’ve not met him. (location 857)</p><p>I like that BMW drivers are detested around the world.</p><div>
<p>When I first brought him [Sam's cat, Gollum] home, he was so traumatised he lived behind the washing machine for three days. (location 1281)</p><p>When I was young, our first cat was Penny the Cat, a mean tuxedoed lady who had been so abused before she lived with us that she spent weeks (months?) hiding behind the toilet - the only bathroom in the house - and hissing at me when I had to use it. I was not a fan of Penny the Cat. (Do you want to see a photo of Penny? Go to <a href="https://optimisticmusings.com/guest-post-welcome-to-ngs/">this post</a> on Elisabeth's site where I guest posted.)</p><div>
<p>There’s woodpeckers here, apparently, and Dartford warblers. Not that I’d know a Dartford warbler if I fell over one while it was warbling its distinctive warble of I’m from Dartford. (location 1352)</p><p>Dartford warblers are small birds with tails longer than other warblers. Also, very cute.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgp0jzMMNU30jFqR05h_vPEZ6CUBupagI8FnPr5s758zY_aeZxEe7gzNuK-U1OMAoWH_vxzakiviJgAGSxy-3dwF6CaMtAAVXm2IJEem9u4JUB6CGhGcmdGEiVjtr0hELM9CpXW-ep8DUO_1e_9mBQhoUyByNFO8icjxnZc2wWvLQJoT0tRMsl1w/s534/Capture.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="355" data-original-width="534" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgp0jzMMNU30jFqR05h_vPEZ6CUBupagI8FnPr5s758zY_aeZxEe7gzNuK-U1OMAoWH_vxzakiviJgAGSxy-3dwF6CaMtAAVXm2IJEem9u4JUB6CGhGcmdGEiVjtr0hELM9CpXW-ep8DUO_1e_9mBQhoUyByNFO8icjxnZc2wWvLQJoT0tRMsl1w/w640-h426/Capture.PNG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I don’t want make too many assumptions, because everyone’s family is different, but if I’d suggested to my mam and dad that we get new Christmas decorations, they’d have taken it about as well as if I’d suggested we eat Santa Claus. (location 2451)</p><p>Eat Santa Claus!! I snorted.</p><div><div>
<p>Tonight, though, he’s actually talking about a group of people with a shared goal, of which I am a part. Even if the goal in question is to fit a twenty-foot Christmas tree into a ten-foot room like we’re on <i>Taskmaster</i>. (location 2884)</p><p>A <i>Taskmaster</i> sighting in the wild!! If you still haven't watched <i>Taskmaster</i>, what are you waiting for?! Start<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4YhsooE5xY"> here</a>. </p><div>
<div style="text-align: left;">“How many eggs?” asks Uncle Johnny. <br />“Two,” I say. From the look of him it’s the lowest answer he’ll accept. <br />“Do him three,” Wendy insists. “He’s a growing boy.”<br />“I’m not sure I am,” I tell her. (location 4757)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The scenes with Jonathan's family are delightful. </div>
</div><p><b>Thing I looked up:</b></p><div>
<p>melomakarona (location 3459) - Greek honey cookies traditionally served around Christmastime</p>
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</div><p><b>Hat mentions (<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/search?q=8.1+hat">why hats?</a>):</b></p><div>
<p>I pull a bit ahead later on with a purple glass fig that has much more of a genital vibe than I’d personally want on a family holiday, and he counters with a tiny fluffy guinea pig in a Santa <b>hat</b> that I actually think looks quite sweet. (location 3266)</p><div>
<p>And he pulls out the little guinea pig in the Santa <b>hat</b>. (location 4516)</p><div>
<p>The then just sort of hangs there between us like a guinea pig in a Santa <b>hat</b>. (location 5561)</p>
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</div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-86235436736694671702024-03-25T05:00:00.004-05:002024-03-25T05:00:00.253-05:00Quarterly Goal: Cow Parade!<p>You may or not remember (why would you?) that one of my fun <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/01/2024-goal-setting.html">quarterly goals</a> was to find and photograph all of the <a href="https://explorefortatkinson.com/our-dairy-history">cow sculptures</a> our local beautification council had put around town. I live in Wisconsin and there are some deep ties to the dairy industry in my town, so these are the seven types of dairy cows.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRByIDs_YlMEvsvu55eAYln_-0bujFmc2velVrz8Mq1kiv9SbgC9sRhYoH1r2c4zBAscjpC8MRF8c45ThpmtsiEQ58j5nHXIJM3h_35n2h99GX5Capecx_M4cmbONgSmTxsq0ckcLuX06Vxeva_8B-vlgsFn8MuytN5nWeS_6Ui3tKDl35gDoDBQ/s4032/red%20and%20white.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRByIDs_YlMEvsvu55eAYln_-0bujFmc2velVrz8Mq1kiv9SbgC9sRhYoH1r2c4zBAscjpC8MRF8c45ThpmtsiEQ58j5nHXIJM3h_35n2h99GX5Capecx_M4cmbONgSmTxsq0ckcLuX06Vxeva_8B-vlgsFn8MuytN5nWeS_6Ui3tKDl35gDoDBQ/w640-h480/red%20and%20white.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red and white</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfgsBERlp5j2i_zoXpwn-DsjKFiA2U-PT-CpWUZ-pWwHyNhXv4U5OMsDZerhhk4xCD6qS3e2yVwUkig7931dP0E9nIuzDT43YWDq2938IHiQ5blCs1tWy5k6Japj9_fKV9f6rXsC5dHVt0s0UAe4F47f1tjJhlVjge_GOyLwBH7o3iuwL4tsDU7g/s4032/milkingshorthorn.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfgsBERlp5j2i_zoXpwn-DsjKFiA2U-PT-CpWUZ-pWwHyNhXv4U5OMsDZerhhk4xCD6qS3e2yVwUkig7931dP0E9nIuzDT43YWDq2938IHiQ5blCs1tWy5k6Japj9_fKV9f6rXsC5dHVt0s0UAe4F47f1tjJhlVjge_GOyLwBH7o3iuwL4tsDU7g/w640-h480/milkingshorthorn.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Milking shorthorn</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_qqEPeAccE2DRbBkCeAVxd0GNc2ZcAYK-Nf6T1LGD4REEbD6fhrifTCErtZ_YO-_cimRpfbKSPhpuBb1Sx6pGgb1a9vtDftA3KKEmwxrpiPZ_jJIlGTWDIOnewWGblA0ag3qxWYu2fk-QhwO2faNJ5j6rOw8Zqff_5O3WsZXAQ2ItU0EQR-KT9w/s4032/jersey.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_qqEPeAccE2DRbBkCeAVxd0GNc2ZcAYK-Nf6T1LGD4REEbD6fhrifTCErtZ_YO-_cimRpfbKSPhpuBb1Sx6pGgb1a9vtDftA3KKEmwxrpiPZ_jJIlGTWDIOnewWGblA0ag3qxWYu2fk-QhwO2faNJ5j6rOw8Zqff_5O3WsZXAQ2ItU0EQR-KT9w/w640-h480/jersey.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jersey</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKjja0rXG-qTWWfY7YLMprqsPy2KA7143-ApL8CsbncYfU8ERizEenMb1iq1S0F04lVKbjtGETQfw4URGKX07-sR89i1OolrCp_hzfwYENRJjyVHMhmsMA31hzii33Bpgzw8P6Scr4m2a5kpSM6ECKb3HUkAcS-p5KA7oWtP7XDvXV4Snv3KP8jw/s4032/holstein.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKjja0rXG-qTWWfY7YLMprqsPy2KA7143-ApL8CsbncYfU8ERizEenMb1iq1S0F04lVKbjtGETQfw4URGKX07-sR89i1OolrCp_hzfwYENRJjyVHMhmsMA31hzii33Bpgzw8P6Scr4m2a5kpSM6ECKb3HUkAcS-p5KA7oWtP7XDvXV4Snv3KP8jw/w640-h480/holstein.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Holstein<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO_8bFRoVSYC0HhkD9rz68qRg4Pjyd_Ma7lm5wzOl3ClPAO1FvyNFWpkW78LKxX7FWk13cd_hIzPy_4lmj33fQn1DokQfgw4fcglkRbG0l9j9119ttAq4_HW_4gVqQrNo87D6vJDsxP8THBuWVeUxrXCiZNrePo3qR_pi-dQ7mHyI7rWFM78RCCg/s4032/brown%20swiss.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO_8bFRoVSYC0HhkD9rz68qRg4Pjyd_Ma7lm5wzOl3ClPAO1FvyNFWpkW78LKxX7FWk13cd_hIzPy_4lmj33fQn1DokQfgw4fcglkRbG0l9j9119ttAq4_HW_4gVqQrNo87D6vJDsxP8THBuWVeUxrXCiZNrePo3qR_pi-dQ7mHyI7rWFM78RCCg/w640-h480/brown%20swiss.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brown Swiss<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPdRkX663SgcfSe8yIMvlnyhX2ddhrLc6staqMgEfVNz4-F5eobPng4_c1UCJaXIcFlnRnAVv5zf-B81N58VXzVYaicSZhzKLOpc9phZRoCRFs06a8Audb-h0-Xe3bRuZ3oC0WeDk8LBBzqcELo5Gbj1_00jGVrsZfl0xiVd8YrEyN6Ig5FrmigQ/s4032/ayrshire.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPdRkX663SgcfSe8yIMvlnyhX2ddhrLc6staqMgEfVNz4-F5eobPng4_c1UCJaXIcFlnRnAVv5zf-B81N58VXzVYaicSZhzKLOpc9phZRoCRFs06a8Audb-h0-Xe3bRuZ3oC0WeDk8LBBzqcELo5Gbj1_00jGVrsZfl0xiVd8YrEyN6Ig5FrmigQ/w640-h480/ayrshire.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ayrshire</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVaaD4LjXHZbnrc4zXGrTZcY9Zxn4mN0DK5rLyrGSv0AHP450xJxN2z8ggemHhS2zNdR6Ctss8nnebX1hP3NAO1T_5jtNl4AQjsXNWyV5D87iEWqPJNU4DiDQ7PXNlMO2NZqdRpEHem4GFZCx2tK9Gvg-pKMqQjpnkGSw4mZgciN-Na33622egkw/s4032/guernsey.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVaaD4LjXHZbnrc4zXGrTZcY9Zxn4mN0DK5rLyrGSv0AHP450xJxN2z8ggemHhS2zNdR6Ctss8nnebX1hP3NAO1T_5jtNl4AQjsXNWyV5D87iEWqPJNU4DiDQ7PXNlMO2NZqdRpEHem4GFZCx2tK9Gvg-pKMqQjpnkGSw4mZgciN-Na33622egkw/w640-h480/guernsey.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Guernsey - This is the only one that's on my regular walking route with Hannah.<br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></td></tr></tbody></table>This is quite a lot of work for relatively little payoff, but now if you want to know what sort of excitement you might see if you ever come visit my town, you have a sneak peek.<p>Which is your favorite? I'm partial to the Holstein. </p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-15966167484584194742024-03-22T05:00:00.006-05:002024-03-22T18:53:23.450-05:00A Day in Photos, Thursday 3/21/2024<p>I'm back with a photo every hour!</p><p><b>5:52am </b>- I just finished reading for twenty minutes in front of my SAD lamp. I'm reading <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75260734-payback-in-death">Payback in Death </a></i>(In Death #57) by JD Robb. Number 57!!! And I still had to wait weeks for the hold to come in at the library. It's a popular series for a reason, I guess. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPCtkR5_PR-nWjua7zvUxjbcdxDegffX8K89Jios3lesv8VEhmv2_7VySI6ntyFK0e_gQYGLduzvAxT7HvpeeGD9DHN-V-h_eThtuU1SB2EUViCX8rQwdqnDN8OX2PXkCVyXEDWAHohUkij-0dle0QooI6PAnqj8KIPMg4LpHu7AscfEr2OLT_ug/s4032/20240321_055217.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPCtkR5_PR-nWjua7zvUxjbcdxDegffX8K89Jios3lesv8VEhmv2_7VySI6ntyFK0e_gQYGLduzvAxT7HvpeeGD9DHN-V-h_eThtuU1SB2EUViCX8rQwdqnDN8OX2PXkCVyXEDWAHohUkij-0dle0QooI6PAnqj8KIPMg4LpHu7AscfEr2OLT_ug/w480-h640/20240321_055217.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><b>6:21am</b> - Hannah and I are on our morning walk. It is pitch black outside and neither one of us is happy about it. </div><div><br /></div><div>"Hannah, look at me."<br />Hannah: Did you hear that? It's a noise! Over there! Could be a killer! Why don't you go look?</div><div>"Hannah, it's just a duck."</div><div>Hannah: It's probably a MURDERER. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9DlsqQfIOF-lpbc1h_uOYfY5iUcbde8kKotkiueIUAbEuhil8gRED_T1azP0-iJ3MCQ645TiKw3H5ThuykXwcuA8m7rMpWSBg6dBn3ruM-hUa_Hw58GwdF0UpO-xhwedWe3abqKmGLr4tk274x9DInL2jEqMP33dRIvweZ40dVb4l7O2G0XTvg/s4032/20240321_062149.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9DlsqQfIOF-lpbc1h_uOYfY5iUcbde8kKotkiueIUAbEuhil8gRED_T1azP0-iJ3MCQ645TiKw3H5ThuykXwcuA8m7rMpWSBg6dBn3ruM-hUa_Hw58GwdF0UpO-xhwedWe3abqKmGLr4tk274x9DInL2jEqMP33dRIvweZ40dVb4l7O2G0XTvg/w480-h640/20240321_062149.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><b>7:34am</b> - Brushing teeth and putting on makeup. We put our initials on our toothbrush heads because otherwise we might accidentally use the other person's. This wouldn't be the end of the world, but my prescription toothpaste is not labeled gluten-free, so it could potentially make Dr. BB ill. This is much less important now that we each have a separate toothbrush, but better safe than sorry.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBdlsRtpbPTEHgrZgM-y81nP925claPCGVFpdawal5A-FMG5RCYVHpg25463ZCJu_W49R6yX1-gr-LCxcyUZ77kluheDYhSCBiqDNL9w8pMLIoek7W894f5B62LEQcyEnaHShIktq9H1jsMyDYZr-CJ7qfzEGUodSkcQFLGDiRQxXa7rddVuDiEw/s4032/20240321_073451.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBdlsRtpbPTEHgrZgM-y81nP925claPCGVFpdawal5A-FMG5RCYVHpg25463ZCJu_W49R6yX1-gr-LCxcyUZ77kluheDYhSCBiqDNL9w8pMLIoek7W894f5B62LEQcyEnaHShIktq9H1jsMyDYZr-CJ7qfzEGUodSkcQFLGDiRQxXa7rddVuDiEw/w480-h640/20240321_073451.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><b>8:10am</b> - I manage to turn on my computer and open up my email and WebEx. I am working from home today for reasons that will become clear soon. I rarely work from home, so it's been exciting to have such a luxurious start to the day.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Pi7iPARyIhX8vqWYF4X9bxfOUBuiSr2YalJVD5DwNSu2Plamxxuq-3MqNBcFlcy58YwnAAGSiCuwLhdoTsx-JQ5OuUizG1wjKYPy-6qa4GXKBYW20WMWw4B242d-zrrauHWEZpfUOtyXaKLBGUdTJS8hAdoZpqEa6XP0HQRSEyixbmDfVreT7w/s4032/20240321_081007.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Pi7iPARyIhX8vqWYF4X9bxfOUBuiSr2YalJVD5DwNSu2Plamxxuq-3MqNBcFlcy58YwnAAGSiCuwLhdoTsx-JQ5OuUizG1wjKYPy-6qa4GXKBYW20WMWw4B242d-zrrauHWEZpfUOtyXaKLBGUdTJS8hAdoZpqEa6XP0HQRSEyixbmDfVreT7w/w640-h480/20240321_081007.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b>9:41am</b> - The girls are sleeping in the mudroom. The perks of working from home are real. Note that Zelda is in Hannah's kennel. Poor Hannah.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIuROAuAvVmuIBn1OMp3e_cDw8c_52-Kv1i9K3qfWsU4c8XaAjgsIGRSaTTbr8SkeyC2DOiCBdD_sh98KPqtm7ZUG-AXkkxymZbn6zpNw32d6BMDrsg7RW3r0-xaPBQ070NifeIA3emgAZaeoJo7hQqY5At3VW-r76CtWWwy2I37klzJF0pW2m_g/s4032/20240321_094129.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIuROAuAvVmuIBn1OMp3e_cDw8c_52-Kv1i9K3qfWsU4c8XaAjgsIGRSaTTbr8SkeyC2DOiCBdD_sh98KPqtm7ZUG-AXkkxymZbn6zpNw32d6BMDrsg7RW3r0-xaPBQ070NifeIA3emgAZaeoJo7hQqY5At3VW-r76CtWWwy2I37klzJF0pW2m_g/w640-h480/20240321_094129.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b>10:49am</b> - I went to a visitation for a funeral for the parent of someone I worked with closely at the community center. This is the main reason I'm working from home today. Then I did some errands and one of those errands meant going by a company that sells pork products and I took a photo of their mascot, this adorable pig.</div><div><br /></div><div>If you are a new reader, you may not know this, but I adore pigs and I haven't eaten pork since I was a teenager outside of an awkward dinner party focused on pork products where I politely took a bite or two of a pork chop and nearly died of horror. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDNxWmXXWryrVf_5UReQYZuoYKH63O31Zux5p5cRAubLDcpGhjf5NtJktJqEAw6IkecQ5Kfnt5deC4HHYOdjFhY3j3NSeZSGGyTy_v46ytLlLJ6FivTM0Li2wAdZFzArNQHcMN1jls-zp2j09wZkavKL6Md2QyLV9lPhh2tm7mnhbmlGvxfqZKmQ/s4032/20240321_104933.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDNxWmXXWryrVf_5UReQYZuoYKH63O31Zux5p5cRAubLDcpGhjf5NtJktJqEAw6IkecQ5Kfnt5deC4HHYOdjFhY3j3NSeZSGGyTy_v46ytLlLJ6FivTM0Li2wAdZFzArNQHcMN1jls-zp2j09wZkavKL6Md2QyLV9lPhh2tm7mnhbmlGvxfqZKmQ/w640-h480/20240321_104933.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>BONUS PHOTO - There's even a pig keychain on my car key. It used to have the name of this very pork product selling company on it, but that lettering wore off years ago. Pigs! So adorable and smart and have any of you watched the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@LeagueofPigs">League of Pigs</a> on YouTube? League of Pigs is also an excellent Instagram follow.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqBYjROpHGEewP-3UPc9KpnSp918Xh4ZE8gwng2AmxK5_VE3KkZyJTuhRPKmp1g5kzeumIhOkYvcsWNIA9x4Ko4KctGsmNjMEkjjrEBZvtF4Z29V9ZvXgFtbAUQWX2Tc3AnroU-PzGBssn8xgbDN08tmhVrgmewpAkfARo5tbOwC4ESqy8n9kneg/s4032/20240321_113321.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqBYjROpHGEewP-3UPc9KpnSp918Xh4ZE8gwng2AmxK5_VE3KkZyJTuhRPKmp1g5kzeumIhOkYvcsWNIA9x4Ko4KctGsmNjMEkjjrEBZvtF4Z29V9ZvXgFtbAUQWX2Tc3AnroU-PzGBssn8xgbDN08tmhVrgmewpAkfARo5tbOwC4ESqy8n9kneg/w640-h480/20240321_113321.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is larger than real life. It's the size of two Rolos stacked together.</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div><b>11:02am</b> - Hey, why don't I show you what I wore to this visitation? I took this afterwards on the property of the pork product selling company. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguhzaib7IYF2wf43FJsr8U5zkh5HjhN1xwKSadAWeOcMxHxYUr60ENj_we-LYLlyuSG4LvU-Ij8zMrhxFIExgNaEBd8WjHwLIE91rSciXZ3mpS-rPVAPAFrPxdUY2nA_t_hqIWpnMXt_KbDEQeprYx3Ai5rkuR3hNJCtGhtyyKjxsiUU1lo2UbOQ/s3024/20240321_110003.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguhzaib7IYF2wf43FJsr8U5zkh5HjhN1xwKSadAWeOcMxHxYUr60ENj_we-LYLlyuSG4LvU-Ij8zMrhxFIExgNaEBd8WjHwLIE91rSciXZ3mpS-rPVAPAFrPxdUY2nA_t_hqIWpnMXt_KbDEQeprYx3Ai5rkuR3hNJCtGhtyyKjxsiUU1lo2UbOQ/w640-h640/20240321_110003.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><b><br /></b><div><b>Boots: </b>Redwing <a href="https://www.redwingshoes.com/heritage/womens/?grid=true&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwte-vBhBFEiwAQSv_xXCCJRbz-w4QFku6ah0E42V51SuVpFWjwg0dJD_cYxYW_fdsxwDxwBoCNykQAvD_BwE">Heritage Collection</a> - These are too narrow, so I can't wear them very long, but they are adorable. </div><div><b>Tights:</b> <a href="https://hue.com/tights/style/fashion/">Hue</a> - It was quite chilly today, so I wore these tights. If it had been a bit warmer, I would just wear fishnets.</div><div><b>Dress:</b> <a href="https://nooworks.com/">NOOWORKS</a> from eight to ten years ago. I have worn this dress to many a funeral.</div><div><b>Cardigan:</b> <a href="https://www.salaamclothing.com/shop-online/core">Salaam Clothing</a> </div><div><b>Necklace:</b> Present from my husband</div><div><b>Coat:</b> Hand-me-down from my SIL</div><div><b>Hat:</b> It's the Craft hat. It's always the Craft hat. (Note: I did not put the hat on until after the visitation had been completed.)</div><div><br /></div><div><b>12:15pm</b> - I had to put away all the things I purchased while out and about: Easter cards, some photos I'm taking to my office, rice we need for dinner (we usually buy rice at Costco, but we just ran out!), a book from the library, and a treat from Dunkin' I bought after the visitation because I needed comfort food.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCj-E1nEVqnv0r2Uq_y_T9QIskHlINL0XvHaYEEB-_EA8K_p-f8Nq0ohgxeQAWgkIVtSIR8z6WBBVoxsbC2a6VVaT8wBXPYuO2sklpY7bd0gGoYjOjmRCZ2G9dZN2Dbg-J_l3_M4IBxwMg7nkIlt4dl1FoFainmTvEcKZmSAClxYDO0e8zx9jqhA/s4032/20240321_121512.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCj-E1nEVqnv0r2Uq_y_T9QIskHlINL0XvHaYEEB-_EA8K_p-f8Nq0ohgxeQAWgkIVtSIR8z6WBBVoxsbC2a6VVaT8wBXPYuO2sklpY7bd0gGoYjOjmRCZ2G9dZN2Dbg-J_l3_M4IBxwMg7nkIlt4dl1FoFainmTvEcKZmSAClxYDO0e8zx9jqhA/w640-h480/20240321_121512.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b>1:47pm</b> - Afternoon walk with Hannah. She's a true stick addict.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfw_ea2NdcMfYev-37H5wkNtodSl-QGZJ-CZJU7cd71cu035uxzIVfkLe4tOVAgneu6RVU7rRvxSI3OeASye06SpjwsqDc_axT0yGT1Z6jbU1P5ixRiIOc6WKv9tp0_ps3Y15hT3VAByR7fu7wTxdL2hRCaUr7bPAkh47InLjoRV-MdzpalOv2Kg/s4032/20240321_134711.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfw_ea2NdcMfYev-37H5wkNtodSl-QGZJ-CZJU7cd71cu035uxzIVfkLe4tOVAgneu6RVU7rRvxSI3OeASye06SpjwsqDc_axT0yGT1Z6jbU1P5ixRiIOc6WKv9tp0_ps3Y15hT3VAByR7fu7wTxdL2hRCaUr7bPAkh47InLjoRV-MdzpalOv2Kg/w640-h480/20240321_134711.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b>2:47pm</b> - This is the view when I look down from my chair while I'm working.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh4RfaCANfUtr9IqGTOwVuhjOjvC-wBkKH9Ph9GAuoiIV8Cp3ov7mWK06Cz40XK4s6KfghBVf3W7j8V3ZQ-rlguJ88FdUnQJ4tM0tD3CQz5lEJfY2WtFC_xD9kmNEk0UCJTuzTHiqmqNYeXKWGYcAQhYhTiFsnNCPQ4Uo6qpy5yeNlkaLc4UhMuw/s4032/20240321_144739.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh4RfaCANfUtr9IqGTOwVuhjOjvC-wBkKH9Ph9GAuoiIV8Cp3ov7mWK06Cz40XK4s6KfghBVf3W7j8V3ZQ-rlguJ88FdUnQJ4tM0tD3CQz5lEJfY2WtFC_xD9kmNEk0UCJTuzTHiqmqNYeXKWGYcAQhYhTiFsnNCPQ4Uo6qpy5yeNlkaLc4UhMuw/w480-h640/20240321_144739.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><b>3:44pm</b> - A Caroline Girvan video. Leg day. So many lunges.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIWMIp0y6rPxeGPvupqOMEvV0FRr4E4B75moXzuPc375YkbrpwE-aFxhdUabFmTJfRvt-XnY7X2YY7aRLr-GOdp60F5DNolWNjEGerAU8FvHn8oNrp6FHpvX5JxBZ-n8leKRD1NRt1ugiU-vBxVndK2skVo9CffUcUBP9qBi24lZBrnxJiUG0IQQ/s4032/20240321_161724.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIWMIp0y6rPxeGPvupqOMEvV0FRr4E4B75moXzuPc375YkbrpwE-aFxhdUabFmTJfRvt-XnY7X2YY7aRLr-GOdp60F5DNolWNjEGerAU8FvHn8oNrp6FHpvX5JxBZ-n8leKRD1NRt1ugiU-vBxVndK2skVo9CffUcUBP9qBi24lZBrnxJiUG0IQQ/w480-h640/20240321_161724.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><b>4:30pm</b> - I am yet again trying to find a decent pair of earbuds that will fit me and has a decent battery life, so I have ordered two pairs and have spent about a week with each trying to see if either one will work. Today I'm trying Jabra Elite 4s. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXDtryWRuhglbYGC8kfT2ccPGXnki6nkLARotq1cpgFxkjELqZx6EWLUydaP4mWkpvB4Mjxsv8qMAGiiaXlVwA56TCt03plAhMxSF6GGCRdBSCN52-0DPh1B2hKVQgqK5xZlVqaDH7TsF7SvgUhWv4tMgCOsxx7gHl6iICXcWWRXXA9yXyoDdK1g/s4032/20240321_163838.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXDtryWRuhglbYGC8kfT2ccPGXnki6nkLARotq1cpgFxkjELqZx6EWLUydaP4mWkpvB4Mjxsv8qMAGiiaXlVwA56TCt03plAhMxSF6GGCRdBSCN52-0DPh1B2hKVQgqK5xZlVqaDH7TsF7SvgUhWv4tMgCOsxx7gHl6iICXcWWRXXA9yXyoDdK1g/w640-h480/20240321_163838.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b>5:42pm</b> - Am reading a book while my husband makes our dinner, Zelda is screaming at him for her dinner, and Hannah is ignoring all of us.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbSyqr_Q3hAdSS8BuRI-6hlBOZElIf1VJapNh5dc98wAk8VzsluTERF4J8ypE1erSllHTg2jMjiUwL4fLB5zuCnS23dxV3Y9ZJFyEuHzffJVl8sFWk7041jyo6S6nYh9JFChk2M83aZA2cKyxJDJXmeB6SKnXArWHlt_jpxHlXq64XA126A4MJ9g/s4032/20240321_174224.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbSyqr_Q3hAdSS8BuRI-6hlBOZElIf1VJapNh5dc98wAk8VzsluTERF4J8ypE1erSllHTg2jMjiUwL4fLB5zuCnS23dxV3Y9ZJFyEuHzffJVl8sFWk7041jyo6S6nYh9JFChk2M83aZA2cKyxJDJXmeB6SKnXArWHlt_jpxHlXq64XA126A4MJ9g/w480-h640/20240321_174224.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><b>6:04pm</b> - Training with Hannah. For the first half of training, we practiced walking, turning, and having me touch her. The second half of the training, we focused on things on the overturned rubber feed bucket. First I had her go to it, put one front paw at a time on it (she's still learning right and left, so this was not 100% successful), then put both front paws on it and walk around CW and CCW. Then she had to stay on it (what you see below). Then I called her to come and we practiced her returning to "place" (the feed bucket) from various distances (she's good when she's close to the bucket, but not great if we get more than about six feet away). We're both learning!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuOJR_XSugPNpmz_Z5IGKs5BG3qH6PgbZ951Ybl3t2pFXdSva6y6VvaWugeDI6T2dY7ge7N1PMyKSsP91hf9eQUJEVFlpmOoISpbI467k8JDEqjeWO0BZmu1HJ2R3AD2EfUw3NN2hwSVs9W-mG0lH__AbIiFw-I1zUxGfqUyVrKZYY7QV371WGvw/s4032/20240321_175922.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuOJR_XSugPNpmz_Z5IGKs5BG3qH6PgbZ951Ybl3t2pFXdSva6y6VvaWugeDI6T2dY7ge7N1PMyKSsP91hf9eQUJEVFlpmOoISpbI467k8JDEqjeWO0BZmu1HJ2R3AD2EfUw3NN2hwSVs9W-mG0lH__AbIiFw-I1zUxGfqUyVrKZYY7QV371WGvw/w480-h640/20240321_175922.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><b>7:29pm</b> - It is our regular grocery store run night. We're expecting a few inches of snow overnight, so everyone in the county was at the store. Meanwhile, this 4-pack of Clearly Canadian water is selling for $9.49. Once you add in tax, you are paying ten American dollars for this! Now, Clearly Canadian is delicious, but this is a warehouse grocery store, not someplace you would expect the future King of England to be shopping. (Where is Kate?!)</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPa6dQ4a0qtJUOErWi53RvGjh5PiuBNkIP8SLizbpWiwj4N7U5wgtw3LUU4F-kgPPRbi9GMBcahA0wT5FyBCTpKdNV8Y2W6S9t-gV1FSZVfEbJ4293Za3ShjOeq_sWZx5197VwykSykLM_-1RFUxWXD9rD3h9HkzGbNFa6OzTHgKzXEIJIJi1MHA/s4032/729.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPa6dQ4a0qtJUOErWi53RvGjh5PiuBNkIP8SLizbpWiwj4N7U5wgtw3LUU4F-kgPPRbi9GMBcahA0wT5FyBCTpKdNV8Y2W6S9t-gV1FSZVfEbJ4293Za3ShjOeq_sWZx5197VwykSykLM_-1RFUxWXD9rD3h9HkzGbNFa6OzTHgKzXEIJIJi1MHA/w640-h480/729.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b>8:35pm</b> - Last walk with Hannah. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkJ6KVTsgMGt0RauxSwsp3fp2jhtoQM_A0WmcLvjXHyIVXLoY9SYZAUktR98xycPvADj2FNjCUXi75mSG61upZZcU4nvbeIWJcvGSlJkcpyUt2NVf3oJp34TWstuAcGUHfIjliyffuy7i8MEuxLGw0sjUkGVQ0ff4ClzXYflU1xGVv43-CIAM76g/s2421/20240321_203557.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2421" data-original-width="2421" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkJ6KVTsgMGt0RauxSwsp3fp2jhtoQM_A0WmcLvjXHyIVXLoY9SYZAUktR98xycPvADj2FNjCUXi75mSG61upZZcU4nvbeIWJcvGSlJkcpyUt2NVf3oJp34TWstuAcGUHfIjliyffuy7i8MEuxLGw0sjUkGVQ0ff4ClzXYflU1xGVv43-CIAM76g/w640-h640/20240321_203557.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><b>9:09pm</b> - Filled out my goal tracking journal. Up next: shower and bed. I'm hoping to be in bed with lights out by 10:15. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqweHQvElA0aUaRB6yA-1p5JDhCjuH7T3_AAUbXWA2ucENLTo9r8jqmJsf-Iv_2Dkx5tGWK2yQfGEmeQLNZa9xkPgx9ezU7uORzmMPTMifwfPUzm6WcYZSnyPG-elPN57a4ogk7sZdHUoa028QDsHZ8rtz-0y1IC8iTLQSEbpldY_73skamp4rOA/s4032/909.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqweHQvElA0aUaRB6yA-1p5JDhCjuH7T3_AAUbXWA2ucENLTo9r8jqmJsf-Iv_2Dkx5tGWK2yQfGEmeQLNZa9xkPgx9ezU7uORzmMPTMifwfPUzm6WcYZSnyPG-elPN57a4ogk7sZdHUoa028QDsHZ8rtz-0y1IC8iTLQSEbpldY_73skamp4rOA/w480-h640/909.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>BONUS PHOTO:</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9YSxV3eTQAAthU5oHdzJtqWrCLnokyZgnQlUSVcjXM5GYLwBd_xaD0QOf7t7Y4VtiJ6NTH1aBCvHaBY9x00XHq9KZq9vDFMC1NrhMxoHjNR6rlIF4ryZBVMGk2T2CepojL_LaaklWAzkXHT-JCH55qhUpTr4RZyUyFPV9GXFwTbjMgQcH94pMeg/s4032/20240321_211536.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9YSxV3eTQAAthU5oHdzJtqWrCLnokyZgnQlUSVcjXM5GYLwBd_xaD0QOf7t7Y4VtiJ6NTH1aBCvHaBY9x00XHq9KZq9vDFMC1NrhMxoHjNR6rlIF4ryZBVMGk2T2CepojL_LaaklWAzkXHT-JCH55qhUpTr4RZyUyFPV9GXFwTbjMgQcH94pMeg/w640-h480/20240321_211536.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b>9:16pm</b> - Zelda settling in for the night. This is mostly because I don't think Zelda got enough face time in this post. </div><div><br /></div><div>********************</div><div><br /></div><div>What's your favorite animal? Do you have a go-to donut type? Would you spend $10 on a four-pack of sparkling water?</div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com38tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-68634438582119544792024-03-21T05:00:00.010-05:002024-03-21T05:00:00.136-05:00The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles (Mossa & Pleiti #2) by Malka Older<div style="text-align: left;">Mossa & Pleiti<br /><i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/08/the-mimicking-of-known-successes-mossa.html">The Mimicking of Known Successes</a></i></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN0Y8w6cEQBROB8Nb04FRuHbqFPaBaeMFIwRPy_P8A1BBaqlnfkMxYPT8YmrBbKJy4VadBWReu8Nq8cAnLJ2av9JKwXTaSr3ca367J5ZaAS7-ug5ASpW0aGL4m74D5UfA8ABapuYc9Sh9HALCQputJi1nt9lk35-3_N5bB34pnuuKGVFAd-PMlnw/s1699/imposition%20of%20unnecessary%20obstacles.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1699" data-original-width="1100" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN0Y8w6cEQBROB8Nb04FRuHbqFPaBaeMFIwRPy_P8A1BBaqlnfkMxYPT8YmrBbKJy4VadBWReu8Nq8cAnLJ2av9JKwXTaSr3ca367J5ZaAS7-ug5ASpW0aGL4m74D5UfA8ABapuYc9Sh9HALCQputJi1nt9lk35-3_N5bB34pnuuKGVFAd-PMlnw/w414-h640/imposition%20of%20unnecessary%20obstacles.jpg" width="414" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Mossa and Pleiti are back! This time, a lot of people are missing from the university where Pleiti works and Mossa needs her help to figure out what's going on. A mystery ensues! Travel around Jupiter and to Io ensues! Woot woot!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Look, this is a lovely series so far. I am enjoying the developing relationship between these two. I feel like the mysteries strike the right balance of important, but not too outrageous. The setting is simply delightful. Who's not interested in what the academic factions will be once humans destroy the Earth and are forced on to other galactic objects? </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Thumbs up. 4.5/5 stars</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /><b>Lines of note:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It was the sort of lecture I liked: a topic that I knew enough about to follow easily, but little enough to feel like I was learning. (page 5) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Yes!! It's not repeating something I already know, but not so far above my head that I don't understand what's going on. This is great observational writing.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I found myself humming under my breath - the second aria of <i>Murderbot</i>. (page 133)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Is this an homage to <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2021/03/network-effect-murderbot-diaries-5-by.html">Martha Wells</a>? It has to be, right? There's not a real opera about a Murderbot? I LOVE the cross-pollination of women in science fiction!!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It wasn't until the ceremony was well under way that I recognized that it was no kind of sacrifice to her: immune to the undercurrents of guilt, resentment, and injustice that so perturbed me, she was observing the social rite with a bass note of fascination. (page 144)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Ha ha. Anyone else go to church ceremonies with a bit of a feeling like you an anthropologist studying a foreign culture?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Things I had to look up:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i>mutatis mutandis</i> (page 2-3) - (used when comparing two or more cases or situations) making necessary alterations while not affecting the main point at issue</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">herpentine (page 9) - I don't know, everyone. It keeps telling me to look up "serpentine," but I listen to Guns 'n' Roses and know that word. The context is: (describing a building) metal walls beaten into the textured, herpentine patterns popular during the era when much of the university's physical plant was built. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">fallecimiento (page 45) - death</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">copine (page 78) - girlfriend</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">bathetic (page 115) - producing an unintentional affect of anticlimax </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">acurrucada (page 123) - curled up like a cat or dog</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">namkaraned (page 133) - to name (seriously, I couldn't figure this out?)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Hat mentions:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">None. This is the second book with a hat on the cover and no mentions in the book. I am starting to feel like Older is trolling me.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">*******************</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">What does herpentine mean? Do you think Older is referencing Martha Wells? What do you think a Murderbot aria would be like? Why is Older trolling me with the hats on the covers of this series?</div><p></p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-34069208021815681992024-03-20T05:00:00.005-05:002024-03-20T05:00:00.148-05:00On Cursing<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieExacmRtvS6PabzHlqC5A-qlagPArwOU0qZiJfxVKAwwvwinmOSvu-mhzQyEqirk_5b9B00GlYWF98cxyVqnnCx_IwbSocpB8uJ8krVxGdspy0lPE_aZn0JOntiR24vsK0Y6NZeeheYn1_MeRcOMrl7GPXb1mCjSGRAkqn7KW3jVJ5V-pWEDUDg/s645/Screenshot%202024-03-17%20190328.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="521" data-original-width="645" height="516" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieExacmRtvS6PabzHlqC5A-qlagPArwOU0qZiJfxVKAwwvwinmOSvu-mhzQyEqirk_5b9B00GlYWF98cxyVqnnCx_IwbSocpB8uJ8krVxGdspy0lPE_aZn0JOntiR24vsK0Y6NZeeheYn1_MeRcOMrl7GPXb1mCjSGRAkqn7KW3jVJ5V-pWEDUDg/w640-h516/Screenshot%202024-03-17%20190328.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/75:_Curse_Levels">xkcd</a>, of course: March 13, 2006</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">******************</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Mid-week last week, my husband came home and talked about how he was leaving one university building for another and he held the door open for three corn-fed Midwestern college students (young women). You know the kind. Stick straight hair (one blonde, two brunette), wearing what looks like pajamas to us Olds, clearly upset about some assessment that had just taken place in their class. My husband reported they were swearing like sailors and using some words that he would never use unless it was a dire situation. He admits that he was clutching his pearls a little bit and was embarrassed at himself. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We were young college students once. We swore a lot. "Leave the college talk at college" was actually a common refrain when he would go to his parents' house on break. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">But this was different, he told me.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">******************</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSVQPU8gDug4J_oA8z1ay6VkM4glNSNb4xrrm0Q_hLF6RudYyn17ZOdsYVUqs3a_MpAyP_v5ZquQL0yZ9HliWLhsTV6atKF8E33_hu6qgSKk4H88O2iRwqv0yW2Vn-ePKIG6egK7iMMjduT4vi8-SVQ3QRu_eJBaJyWN5iEJAHybrzcZAdVdXGPA/s1820/vox.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1820" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSVQPU8gDug4J_oA8z1ay6VkM4glNSNb4xrrm0Q_hLF6RudYyn17ZOdsYVUqs3a_MpAyP_v5ZquQL0yZ9HliWLhsTV6atKF8E33_hu6qgSKk4H88O2iRwqv0yW2Vn-ePKIG6egK7iMMjduT4vi8-SVQ3QRu_eJBaJyWN5iEJAHybrzcZAdVdXGPA/w640-h360/vox.webp" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Cut to him reading the news over his morning tea later in the week and reading an article in Vox called "<a href="https://www.vox.com/culture/24098830/holy-shit-brief-history-profanity-melissa-mohr-what-the-f-benjamin-bergen-praise-michael-adams">Why the **** does everyone swear all the ******* time?</a>" and it talks about the shifts in swearing over time.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1) Medieval times: The worst curse words were those that invoked religious swearing (zounds = Christ's wounds and was BAD). Words surrounding sex and bodily excrements were normalized because there was no privacy and everyone was fucking in front of everyone, so, hey, not a big deal.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">2) By the 15th century, privacy was more of a thing and bodily words became more taboo. By the Victorian era, people called underwear "unmentionables," but in a post-Enlightenment era, religious curses were not at all shocking. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">3) People my age (40 and older) tend to think of cursing as mostly about sex and bodies. Fuck has slowly become less and less offensive, but still most people would probably not ask their boss "how the fuck was your weekend?" on Monday morning. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">4) Young people (younger than 40) don't think that the curses having to deal with sex and bodies are all that bad. They are reclaiming the word cunt (which, I swear to you, I do not think I have ever said out loud and I am typing it here, but am very much embarrassed about it), using fuck with impunity, and shit isn't even in the top fifty of most offensive words.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">(The article did not say this, but I think this has to do with the ubiquity of porn in society these days. But I'm an Old, so my hypothesis is based on nothing more than speculation.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So what is offensive to these young whippersnappers? Slurs. Racial, ethnic, and religious slurs. I'm not going to type them here, but you know the words and phrases I'm talking about. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">******************</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Of course, there are people who never curse. Or maybe they'll happily say "cheese n rice" or "oh mylanta," but would never take the lord's name in vain or let out a swear. Those people are to be respected. I'm sure they're much more articulate than those of whose response when you (hypothetically) accidentally drop an entire bowl of popcorn on the floor is to say "damn it all," and their minds are probably a much kinder place.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">But for those of you who do occasionally or more than occasionally curse, where do you fall in this spectrum? Are you an Old or a Young? Would you be taken aback if some young people started swearing in front of you? What about the c-word? </div></div><p></p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com57tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-22752513474674210692024-03-19T05:00:00.005-05:002024-03-19T05:00:00.130-05:00Yours Truly (Part of Your World #2) by Abby Jimenez<p>I have a seriously conflicted relationship with Abby Jimenez, the author of <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61918816-yours-truly?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=Iw0AhOUGop&rank=1">Yours Truly</a></i>. <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2022/01/the-friend-zone-friend-zone-1-by-abby.html">The Friend Zone</a></i> pissed me off so badly that I swear my blood pressure goes skyrocketing when I even THINK about that book even though it honestly had the possibility of being a good book. <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2022/02/the-happy-ever-after-playlist-friend.html">The Happy Ever After Playlist</a></i> was pretty good, though. <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54377375-life-s-too-short?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=nmTIStYyy1&rank=1">Life's Too Short</a></i> was terrible. </p><p>So it was with some serious reservations that when <a href="https://stephanywrites.com/what-im-reading-2-12-24/">Stephany</a> recommended this book HIGHLY, I took it out from the library. And, boy was she right. This is a nearly perfect romance novel. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfytRuYfpORFScNFqUEFMPe4ENaUS2yvejL3FmqKfvGhyuQYCAAoSRV4rMCU5ZbS37oG4kmJZcJSygiMBpGFnWTimnLwKh7PGwQUuFu5zsOWha0w81kWsFQ5KCNzBAkIJhVSMnapudJPfyC26qyGw8J2RUJqtOKcvsSk4RfDT0-5P0utuktUzAFg/s4032/20240311_204246.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfytRuYfpORFScNFqUEFMPe4ENaUS2yvejL3FmqKfvGhyuQYCAAoSRV4rMCU5ZbS37oG4kmJZcJSygiMBpGFnWTimnLwKh7PGwQUuFu5zsOWha0w81kWsFQ5KCNzBAkIJhVSMnapudJPfyC26qyGw8J2RUJqtOKcvsSk4RfDT0-5P0utuktUzAFg/w480-h640/20240311_204246.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Briana Ortiz's life is not great. Her brother is sick, her divorce is going to be final soon, and it looks like her promotion is on the line because of the new guy, Jacob. Plus the new guy is a bit of a dick. But then he writes her a letter (OMG! a <i>letter</i>! you know I got super pumped) explaining that he has anxiety and then it turns out he needs a fake girlfriend to attend a wedding. I don't think I need to explain to any of you what happens next, do I?</p><p><b>Interesting characters:</b> Oh, boy, do these two do it for me! Jacob is *whispers quietly* very much like my dear husband. I am not Briana, but the accommodations she makes for Jacob made me feel very seen. Your mileage may vary on these two, but they very very much appealed to me. Their banter is funny, there's a dog (Lieutenant Dan!), a cat (Cooter!), and relationships with people outside of their romantic relationships. Two thumbs up. (Don't sue me, Siskel and Ebert estates.)</p><p><b>Believable conflict:</b> Yeah. These two are both getting out of intense long-term relationships and it's clear that they're reacting to the past relationships, which is totally understandable. They also do things like reflect on their own behavior and communicate about reasons for their actions later (sometimes in <i>letters</i> *I swoon*).</p><p><b>Emotional tension:</b> Oh, yes!! They aren't physical for so long and I just want them to do a kiss on the cheek or something!!</p><p><b>Happily ever after:</b> This is the "nearly" in "nearly a perfect romance novel." The ending. Uff-da. I have thoughts, but there are two main issues that I don't really want to say because it's a spoiler, but just know that if you despise this ending, you are not alone. </p><p>4.5/5 stars (docked fully half a star because of that ending)</p><p><b>Lines of note:</b></p><p>I knew from years of therapy that I was ruminating. That the encounter had probably been nothing to her, but to me it felt like the most embarrassing thing that had ever happened. A decade from now I'd be lying in bed and my eyes would fly open and I'd remember the incredulous way she'd looked at m - me, the guy who had the audacity to walk into her ER room and talk to her about running toward a critical patient, one she obviously knew and cared about. (page 22)</p><p>I have a recurring nightmare about a phone call I had when I was twelve or thirteen. True story. I won't share my trauma with you, but it's there.</p><p>I wondered if I could keep doing this. I was miserable here. I was miserable at Memorial, and I would probably be miserably wherever else I went too. Maybe this was my life now, just existing and hating every minute of it. (page 29)</p><p>Sometimes I think this is me. I'm the problem, not the world. </p><p>I'd always known what I was and was not capable of, even as a child. Your parents tell you that you can grow up and be anything. But I knew from the earliest age that wasn't true. I remember my teacher telling me I could be president one day, and me replying that I didn't want to because I didn't like parades. (page 89)</p><p>1) I do not lie to my niblings about things like this. This started because I have a different view on religion than my in-laws and I promised myself that I'd never lie. I have answered direct questions about God, Santa, and comic book characters that differ greatly from how their parents would answer (and always reported to the parents so they would know if the kids had questions). I have also talked to my niece who has a severe physical disability about what her future job prospects are (i.e., you can be a landscape designer, but you're never going to be the person who plants the flowers). </p><p>2) You could maybe be a flower. Or a gumball machine. Or a t-rex. (See the comments in <a href="https://girlinaboyhouse.com/2024/03/11901/">Nicole</a>'s post to know what this about.)</p><p>Eating was intimate. It took me a long time to truly feel comfortable doing it in front of someone. (page 98)</p><p>My husband hates to have people watch him eat. Hates it. I don't make eye contact with him during meals; like he's a rescue dog at a shelter. </p><p>"...but I have as much willpower as a piece of broccoli." (page 251)</p><p>This was hilarious. And goes to talk about the tension in this book. Also, this is how I feel about Payday candy bars. And gummy bears. </p><p><b>Hat mentions (<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/06/81-hat-in-books.html">why hats?</a>):</b></p><p>People in wedding veils and birthday <b>hats</b> hooting and cheering, shouting over the music. (page 11)</p><p>A selfie in front of Minnehaha Falls. She was wearing sunglasses and a gray baseball <b>hat </b>in that one. (page 84)</p><p>This book takes place in the Twin Cities, only you don't really know that except for a brief mention of Edina and this Minnehaha Falls namecheck. It still made me happy to be there. </p><p>He had his <b>hat</b>-in-hand, puppy-dog look again. (page 139)</p><p>A squirrel in a cowboy <b>hat</b> and chaps riding a turtle. (page 149)</p><p>I'm not going to explain this quote. You just have to read the book yourself to learn!</p><p>Jacob looked relieved that his gift had hit the mark and turned back to me with the puppy-dog, <b>hat</b>-in-hand smile that always made my face go soft. (page 232)</p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-66500203603667569832024-03-18T05:00:00.002-05:002024-03-19T08:06:49.270-05:00Podcast Roundup March 2024<p>It's been a couple of months since I shouted out some podcast episodes. Here's what I've taken note of in the last eight weeks.</p><p>"<a href="https://www.npr.org/2024/01/26/1197956698/planet-money-draft-01-26-2024">Rescues at sea, and how to make a fortune</a>" from <i>Planet Money</i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1sTZg8ibFFG67K_kYZnyTQ8zK3jlurDTysYtuaOMlQor9tUPZjOm0TqWYrqUJ5IlzOnCljv8u4sfmy257qRW4_0iBU_As31Srp1S5YugvXjxMOwOgrVg6BTAWtyI74gEkNzayvzQQC5mwLtoYhV6RvmDK99D9xpUFhPz2SmXX32pBLrQ4JgSmSw/s900/salvage-rights-supreme-court_wide-7e19246d207b8c3f406df9c99f043ab21152b8bf-s900-c85.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="506" data-original-width="900" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1sTZg8ibFFG67K_kYZnyTQ8zK3jlurDTysYtuaOMlQor9tUPZjOm0TqWYrqUJ5IlzOnCljv8u4sfmy257qRW4_0iBU_As31Srp1S5YugvXjxMOwOgrVg6BTAWtyI74gEkNzayvzQQC5mwLtoYhV6RvmDK99D9xpUFhPz2SmXX32pBLrQ4JgSmSw/w640-h360/salvage-rights-supreme-court_wide-7e19246d207b8c3f406df9c99f043ab21152b8bf-s900-c85.webp" width="640" /></a></div><p>Perhaps I am not a reliable source on things having to do with tales on the sea because I love them all, but this story about how an oil tanker saved a tugboat from certain sinking and then claimed salvage rights was super interesting. Maritime law is fascinating and if there are any future lawyers reading this, think about maritime law as a specialty! So interesting!</p><p>"<a href="https://www.npr.org/2024/02/14/1197954714/black-personal-ads-valentines">The Lonesome Hearts of 1937</a>" from <i>Code Switch</i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhncF7WgURIWRyKs7BAnknoQM1ykV6fL6EW6wiC-NGcvoAVqZIDKQ2iPp3A-Lrr1-xjDjzrTzLYADiOr7sr9T4ElhLaHd9AKvdjjqPw69DcVgGmdIlj-xl6EWcWni3Wk_fM5EsRUqby87dY-mZ6SNBrBMp3iO_rwcUUFXzXAqEmAAuGAjAWHr03Kw/s900/lonesomehearts5-390e8befa8f2dcf263d29d3488f96bd32ab87340-s900-c85.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="674" data-original-width="900" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhncF7WgURIWRyKs7BAnknoQM1ykV6fL6EW6wiC-NGcvoAVqZIDKQ2iPp3A-Lrr1-xjDjzrTzLYADiOr7sr9T4ElhLaHd9AKvdjjqPw69DcVgGmdIlj-xl6EWcWni3Wk_fM5EsRUqby87dY-mZ6SNBrBMp3iO_rwcUUFXzXAqEmAAuGAjAWHr03Kw/w640-h480/lonesomehearts5-390e8befa8f2dcf263d29d3488f96bd32ab87340-s900-c85.webp" width="640" /></a></div><br />This episode aired on Valentine's Day and was a really fun look at lonely hearts ads in newspapers in a post-slavery world. There was a bit where they were trying to find a good candidate for one of the hosts that made me laugh and laugh. This is a great bit of mixing in real history with a great storyline. I had no real knowledge of these classifieds and enjoyed reading them greatly. I feel like there's a kernel for some great historical romance novel in this. (On a more serious note, there was an episode from this same podcast called "<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/why-menthol-cigarettes-have-a-chokehold-on-black-smokers/id1112190608?i=1000646048602">Why menthol cigarettes have a chokehold on Black smokers</a>" that was also filled with so much information on a topic I knew nothing about. <i>Code Switch</i> had sort of fallen off my radar for a bit, but I feel like it has gotten back in top form recently.)<p></p><p>"<a href="https://podbay.fm/p/today-in-focus/e/1708311600">Deported and disgraced: the students wrongly accused of cheating</a>" from <i>Today in Focus</i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGdL2q8kADg99eUinbFbwdwPNzaAYfORMua2XIUXYT8PqH-JoRIj7BTpNakzkw8CXfD7WAEkYkGSiB69Ghm-i32NH1vGyQ6nctI_b1q0l1WCUH5bVDh_wNrlRHcS09chnSUitSV4XKrHUqzVLmXsu8mx56bn0PFFhK9gjyFKw9FG67ZB1Xooz0dA/s1400/today-in-focus-the-guardian-D7l6Bn_MLz8-VbnytL0z38E.1400x1400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1400" data-original-width="1400" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGdL2q8kADg99eUinbFbwdwPNzaAYfORMua2XIUXYT8PqH-JoRIj7BTpNakzkw8CXfD7WAEkYkGSiB69Ghm-i32NH1vGyQ6nctI_b1q0l1WCUH5bVDh_wNrlRHcS09chnSUitSV4XKrHUqzVLmXsu8mx56bn0PFFhK9gjyFKw9FG67ZB1Xooz0dA/w640-h640/today-in-focus-the-guardian-D7l6Bn_MLz8-VbnytL0z38E.1400x1400.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />In 2014, more than 35,000 people were accused of cheating on the TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) in the UK. Some students were deported back to their home countries, some students could stay with their reputations in tatters, many ended up with mental and physical health issues. In light of the weirdness that came out of the UK accusing many postal employees of fraud (see <i>The Great Post Office Trial</i>, a podcast I wrote about around this time <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/03/518-winner-podcast-roundup-march-2023.html">last year</a>), I am starting to feel a tiny bit of American superiority over all this. Anyway, fascinating story. <p></p><p>"<a href="https://www.wcrfm.com/podcasts/off-menu/episode/ep-225-susan-wokoma-live-in-bristol/">Susan Wokoma</a>," "<a href="https://www.wcrfm.com/podcasts/off-menu/episode/ep-229-sam-campbell-live-in-nottingham/">Sam Campbell</a>," and "<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-227-john-robins-live-in-bristol/id1442950743?i=1000646673938">John Robins</a>" from <i>Off Menu</i> (live episodes)</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp6sFXX1AvrTOV9mGAXarlqZbiG9XBFyR5_uKrsR54NHRNoqara_KCO3gzv0w2uF3fT6w6qyPT8r7aUVLwHj-NF-Jk-QaN1BJylemxHLrjX-6TXSTGoaOxcx7llZMUQkZrFJS6wc-0RlOaPZMkLzsCUROajOyin5DuFbiZwzfj4Y9IbCvTNDgCMw/s1200/FtqfT0mWcAEWtcs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="960" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp6sFXX1AvrTOV9mGAXarlqZbiG9XBFyR5_uKrsR54NHRNoqara_KCO3gzv0w2uF3fT6w6qyPT8r7aUVLwHj-NF-Jk-QaN1BJylemxHLrjX-6TXSTGoaOxcx7llZMUQkZrFJS6wc-0RlOaPZMkLzsCUROajOyin5DuFbiZwzfj4Y9IbCvTNDgCMw/w512-h640/FtqfT0mWcAEWtcs.jpg" width="512" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>I have not been a loyal <i>Off Menu</i> listener. I listen when I know the guest, but even those I end up skipping about halfway through because sometimes it's not that great. I mean, when <i>Off Menu</i> hits, it hits, but there are more misses than hits. But they have been releasing some of the guests from their live shows at the end of last year and they are <i>amazing</i>. Susan Wokoma can barely stop laughing to complete her thoughts, Sam Campbell makes James Acaster look sensible, and John Robins messes with the format so badly that Ed and James don't even know what do with it. I was trying to listen to the Sam Campbell episode while working out and I had to turn it off because I was laughing so hard I thought I was going to drop a dumbbell. <div><br /></div><div>****************</div><div><br /></div><div>Any great podcast episodes you've listened to recently? Or any great new songs? <br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p></div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-52572216420250955422024-03-15T05:00:00.002-05:002024-03-15T13:24:19.096-05:00Five for FridayThis is a list I came up with while I was on a walk with Hannah. I kept stopping to add things to my notes app on my phone.<div><br /></div><div>1) My favorite eyeshadow primer has been discontinued. Stay Don't Stray by Benefit has been a staple to my makeup game for a long, long time. I just did a search on my blog and I talked about it in <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2011/05/makup.html">2011</a>, so I've been using it for more than a decade. I do not know how to replace it. Here's what I've tried.</div><div><br /></div><div>A sample of <a href="https://www.rarebeauty.com/products/always-an-optimist-weightless-eye-primer">Rare Beauty</a> Always an Optimist: They sell this as "weightless," but that is 100% inaccurate. It was very heavy, a very dark color (darker than my shadow!) and was incredibly hard to blend. Did not like. (I did like the other primers that I sampled, just not the eyeshadow primer.)</div><div><br /></div><div>A travel size of <a href="https://www.sephora.com/product/eyeshadow-primer-potion-tube-original-P284716?om_mmc=ppc-GG_948364985_46037164054_dsa-321663103100__426708417082_9018823_c&country_switch=us&lang=en&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwwMqvBhCtARIsAIXsZpaCHo-SxKkxgLBjnoNhx88zvlQbS0OWrT6s013I_AKynTjKRN52IjgaAvPFEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds">Urban Decay</a> Eyeshadow Primer Potion: This plain does not work. My eyeshadow has melted into the creases by noon.</div><div><br /></div><div>I am begging for eyeshadow primer recommendations over here.</div><div><br /></div><div>2) I heard "Beaches of Cheyenne" by Garth Brooks the other day and got all choked up. This song used to be just a sort of boring mid-tempo ballad for me back in the day, but I saw Garth in concert in Columbus in <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2016/04/garth-partie-trois.html">2016</a> and now I legitimately think of this as one of my favorite Garth songs. There was something about how he performed it that really swayed me into thinking it's one of the most powerful songs ever. Do you have a song or an artist that you flipped when you saw them live (either for the better or for the worse?)?</div><div><br /></div><div>3) I am currently doing a thing at work where I meet with students who are on academic warning or probation. These meetings tend to be a lot of me listening to students and making appropriate referrals, whatever they may be. I also will sometimes do advising about summer classes and I was working with a student on warning and said "okay, so this stats class is a six-week course, so it will be at an accelerated pace so don't work a 40-hour job at the same time because it will take a lot of time." The student said, "I'm not a bad student or stupid" which was NOT what I was saying at all. I flipped over her transcript, circled her first four semesters and said "this shows you're a good student" and then circled her last semester and said "this shows something bad happened. Now we're fixing that." </div><div><br /></div><div>Then she was crying and then I was crying. </div><div><br /></div><div>The kids are having a rough time out there. </div><div><br /></div><div>4) Two of my beloved podcasts are coming to an end. <i><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/60-songs-that-explain-the-90s/id1635211340">60 Songs That Explain the '90s</a></i> just released its last episode. One of the hosts of <i><a href="https://lets-go-to-court-podcast-store.myshopify.com/pages/about-the-show">Let's Go To Court</a></i> is leaving podcasting, so that one is also ending. I am not ashamed to admit that my Wednesdays are going to be a bit drearier from here on out. I'm not really looking for new podcasts because I think if I whittled down my podcast listening I could actually listen to more audiobooks, which would be good for me, but I am still sad. </div><div><br /></div><div>5) Late-stage capitalism sighting at the grocery store last night.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTGtQWEd3UhnLURqHdBqu8JJc3D54hkcwkICYBmnfXWFYLfPTY3XIxx0trNtC5mYiVgB0sUGnjfwoBJoc6oHH3XSQhdoq6VxVcOnK0C1MOjTKCAJg5NDcqA6vGknnLVJT1jj48GOC0JKTCkgoRS81hfMphFM7OsRMPhxVS0EtrgUOl0zehk8lUwg/s4032/20240314_192155.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTGtQWEd3UhnLURqHdBqu8JJc3D54hkcwkICYBmnfXWFYLfPTY3XIxx0trNtC5mYiVgB0sUGnjfwoBJoc6oHH3XSQhdoq6VxVcOnK0C1MOjTKCAJg5NDcqA6vGknnLVJT1jj48GOC0JKTCkgoRS81hfMphFM7OsRMPhxVS0EtrgUOl0zehk8lUwg/w480-h640/20240314_192155.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div>*******************</div><div>Hit me with eyeshadow primer recs, songs that you've flipped on, and what your favorite sugar cereal is. </div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com45tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-9803945674909948082024-03-14T05:00:00.002-05:002024-03-14T05:00:00.246-05:00Vicious (Villains #1) by V.E. Schwab<p><i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40874032-vicious?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_7">Vicious</a></i> (Villains #1) by V.E. Schwab came into my life via that massive <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/n713om/rfantasys_top_books_by_women_2021_results/">100 Best Fantasy Books by Women</a> list from r/reddit. Victor and Eli are college friends who share an interest in the conditions that create people who have extraordinary abilities. Soon they give themselves some of those abilities and they become enemies. Along the way, we meet other "EOs," a girl, a dog, and a hacker. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSwArHYCxgq85AUKmp4MdFGz9GXXrjj9np7Zn4cdKiZ0aQKFnhunPMJO0LKsyqgUx6UYAlIaEZbIyyG6usR0F0OLPbOy4_I-cX1ToV18IN1SSL1cNi8FYpf7lv5E1-ZrMOMvMBL_m_YXoU4h3_4Zbf5hHQM0dt_hyphenhyphenWOLQMegcRuHKd8oy-_ABGSA/s700/vicious.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="700" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSwArHYCxgq85AUKmp4MdFGz9GXXrjj9np7Zn4cdKiZ0aQKFnhunPMJO0LKsyqgUx6UYAlIaEZbIyyG6usR0F0OLPbOy4_I-cX1ToV18IN1SSL1cNi8FYpf7lv5E1-ZrMOMvMBL_m_YXoU4h3_4Zbf5hHQM0dt_hyphenhyphenWOLQMegcRuHKd8oy-_ABGSA/w640-h640/vicious.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I listened to this as an audiobook and it was fine. I was interested enough that I considered listening to the audiobook of the second book right away, but it wasn't available for immediate download, so now I have the second one tagged at TBR, but will it ever make my list of actual holds? I guess we'll see. </p><p>It's tough because both Eli and Victor are legitimate bad guys. It feels like a <i>Breaking Bad</i> situation and, loyal readers who've been around for a long time might remember that I never got past the part in <i>Breaking Bad</i> when Walter White watched a woman die. But the book eventually brings in a child and a dog and, hey, I am immediately swayed into caring about the outcome when there is a dog involved. So, if you're into books with morally questionable characters, a little magic, and a dog named Dol, you might like this. 3.5/5 stars</p><p><b>Lines of note:</b></p><p>Is this what normal seniors did? Drank and danced with bodies interlocking like puzzle pieces to music loud enough to drown out thoughts? (timestamp 2:10:22) </p><p>Sometimes I hear that people go to bars and I get confused. Why is that fun? I could be at home reading a book with a cat on my lap. </p><p>He appreciated Mitch's incongruities. They made him interesting. (timestamp 4:20:07)</p><p>I was talking with a student today. He was ill-kempt with crazy hair and a backpack covered in patches of metal bands. He also had a 4.0 and was talking very earnestly about an internship over the summer. He was super interesting.</p><p>Each page had a block of text, lines of stolen information, names and ages and brief medical summaries following brief lines on their respective accidents or traumas, psych notes, police reports, antipsychotic and painkiller prescriptions. Information distilled. Messy lives made neat. (timestamp 4:21: 55)</p><p>I've been thinking about this ever since I finished that Martha Ballard non-fiction book. The author talked about how if Marth hadn't written a diary, we would really only know the days she was born, gave birth, and died. We wouldn't even really know she was a midwife. Our lives end up being distilled into so little and yet we worry about money, jobs, getting the trash out in time, and what to eat for dinner. I don't know what I think about all that, but think about it I do.</p><p>Eli was fascinated by kitchens, by the way people ordered their lives, the cabinets they used, the places they kept food, and the food they choose to keep. He'd spent the last decade studying people and it was amazing how much could be gleaned from their homes. Their bedrooms and bathrooms and closets, of course, but also their kitchens...(timestamp 6:09:53)</p><p>What room do you think you can tell the most about someone from? </p><p><b>Hat mentions:</b></p><p>None.</p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-50732625594427619552024-03-13T05:00:00.098-05:002024-03-13T05:00:00.246-05:002024 Work Uniform (for Colder Months)<p>TL;DR I wear clothes to work. Generally a dress, leggings, and some accessories. </p><p>********************</p><p>I usually work in the office five days a week. I can work from home once in a while, but I meet in-person with students with some frequency and I like to have all the days available so that I can be as flexible as possible to make it work for their schedules. I want to know what I'm going to wear in the morning with minimal thinking. So it's a dress and leggings for me. I have a pair of boots that I leave in my office that I change into every day - just call me Fred Rogers. </p><p>Requirements for my "winter" dresses: sleeves and pockets. I prefer a wrap or faux wrap, but those are challenging to find, so I wear a lot of A-line dresses. I strongly prefer natural fabrics - cotton and wool mostly. Here's what I wore to work last week.</p><p>(I tried to link to exact items of clothing if they're still made. Otherwise I just linked the company.)</p><p>********************</p><p><b>Monday:</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgubhO29zFi8WqGHIfjm1vD0x6qgJGYAW9BCvV-bfI2OVe8f4l2mdNdIpIMS-s9abkjZ1mopYDBQu7YR9QtNs2a1orI_qL2-i0j2L3CQilCrL7XpNecUMzyhxu1VQflgWO5YZVCVVbNhdRE0D6yuEfHiV1dKr1wtAkNVcVwRMOTJehtgRBJln9YvA/s4032/March%204.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgubhO29zFi8WqGHIfjm1vD0x6qgJGYAW9BCvV-bfI2OVe8f4l2mdNdIpIMS-s9abkjZ1mopYDBQu7YR9QtNs2a1orI_qL2-i0j2L3CQilCrL7XpNecUMzyhxu1VQflgWO5YZVCVVbNhdRE0D6yuEfHiV1dKr1wtAkNVcVwRMOTJehtgRBJln9YvA/w480-h640/March%204.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p>Just as we were about to leave work for the day, there was a tornado warning (in early March! egads!). My husband and I headed to an interior office (we purposefully did not go to an actual tornado shelter because <i>all the other people</i> would be there) and it was So Loud and So Long and I started doing a mini-photo shoot for the purpose of this blog post. I love that my husband is laughing at me in this photo as if he is still surprised by my nonsense all these years later. </p><div style="text-align: left;">Dress: <a href="https://matatraders.com/products/sweet-seams-dress-diamond-vine-black">Mata Traders</a><br />Leggings: <a href="https://www.duluthtrading.com/s/DTC/womens-noga-naturale-cotton-leggings-20935.html?color=MBE">Duluth Trading Company</a> (mini review - comfortable leggings with pockets and a wide waistband that doesn't roll - they do fade quickly, so wash them on cool and line-dry them)<br />Shoes: <a href="https://cydwoq.com/products/horn">CYDWOK</a> (I'm not wearing my boots here because we were on our way out the door when the sirens went off and I'd already changed out of them, but I'm wearing my CYDWOK Mary Janes - this link is not an exact match because CYDWOK doesn't make these exact shoes anymore, but I've had them for more than a decade, so they are well worth the investment - I will evangelize for this company for the rest of my life)</div><div style="text-align: left;">Accessories: <a href="https://twisted-silver.com/collections/bracelets/products/capture-mini-bracelet">Twisted Silver</a> bracelet (not this exact one), handmade daisy beaded bracelet</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I have a thin black belt I sometimes wear with this dress to give it/me more of a waist.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br />Tuesday:</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">I was at a fair on another campus this day, so I didn't go into the office. No photos, but I wore some dark wash boot cut jeans (<a href="https://www.duluthtrading.com/s/DTC/womens-double-flex-fence-mender-flare-leg-jeans-72809.html?color=RIS">Duluth Trading Company</a>), brown boots (<a href="https://www.redwingshoes.com/heritage/womens/clara/Clara-03406.html?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAi6uvBhADEiwAWiyRdkFNLHO-rZP5vZmQyrUFs97bFAYU99RMv6yMsOo_IExgCcLgtZVkuxoCxDgQAvD_BwE">Redwing Heritage Collection</a>), sleeveless purple shirt (Limited from fourteen years ago - see this <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2010/01/how-i-spent-my-money.html">post</a>!), black cardigan (from <a href="https://www.whitehouseblackmarket.com/store?sem=br&network=o&campaign=WHBM_BI_BR_NEW_Core_Exact&device=c&utm_content=kwd-73323954708431%3Aloc-190x1173179935186673x458037436&msclkid=aa10b46d393f178e07c6d183092326c5&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=WHBM_BI_BR_NEW_Core_Exact&utm_term=white%20house%20black%20market">White House Black Market</a> literally decades ago when they only sold white and black items), and brown belt (Gap from a decade ago). </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Wednesday:</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijTCU_T7CmpmJwMulNcoE4DvCKZw5KmvpVwp4qiv0jCb0uW3ylzXsAAvSpUmw4ujRSQKeou8N_v3ziKDQ8jlbfX0ZOrX-RTEySx3YzUOC-OeqPisV6LL68pZ6zTd9BzB3sPtiBIhb7EAnewW8oMI87M0Pz-YhwSMZq6O3G4HNjAbYGXx3xJPM6Ew/s2252/March%206.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="2252" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijTCU_T7CmpmJwMulNcoE4DvCKZw5KmvpVwp4qiv0jCb0uW3ylzXsAAvSpUmw4ujRSQKeou8N_v3ziKDQ8jlbfX0ZOrX-RTEySx3YzUOC-OeqPisV6LL68pZ6zTd9BzB3sPtiBIhb7EAnewW8oMI87M0Pz-YhwSMZq6O3G4HNjAbYGXx3xJPM6Ew/w640-h640/March%206.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Dress: <a href="https://www.toadandco.com/products/rosalinda-dress-black?variant=32689538727984">Toad & Co.</a> (the pocket in this dress is less than ideal, but it's there)</div><div style="text-align: left;">Leggings: Duluth Trading Company</div><div style="text-align: left;">Boots: <a href="https://cydwoq.com/products/deform">CYDWOK</a> </div><div style="text-align: left;">Scarf: Present from my friend Essen in grad school </div><div style="text-align: left;">Accessories: <a href="https://twisted-silver.com/collections/bracelets/products/capture-mini-bracelet">Twisted Silver</a> bracelet (not this exact one), handmade daisy beaded bracelet</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Thursday:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixgkg3wEDzCc2s2-RACJNzGSNtl75BKZRRY2aVAVDwW9n5F5WmKnT9H8VO3S4SUNfqnDpnC7E3a_l-G_fmbsw4kDxo876n6GBo_vHywgQy2ZZibHCMem8G897NZRM8mZlNZ7t3rfseTKrQWTRTCU7uqW5qtRE11X6k8bTQE5uM763mWkW2Uh_FwA/s4032/march%207.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixgkg3wEDzCc2s2-RACJNzGSNtl75BKZRRY2aVAVDwW9n5F5WmKnT9H8VO3S4SUNfqnDpnC7E3a_l-G_fmbsw4kDxo876n6GBo_vHywgQy2ZZibHCMem8G897NZRM8mZlNZ7t3rfseTKrQWTRTCU7uqW5qtRE11X6k8bTQE5uM763mWkW2Uh_FwA/w480-h640/march%207.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Dress: <a href="https://matatraders.com/products/novela-dress-diamond-vine-dark-sage">Mata Traders</a> </div><div style="text-align: left;">Leggings: Duluth Trading Company</div><div style="text-align: left;">Boots: CYDWOK</div><div style="text-align: left;">Scarf: I have long since removed the tag, so I don't know the designer, but I bought it at <a href="https://helenwinnemores.com/">Helen Winnemore's</a>, a cute shop in Columbus, Ohio</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Friday:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhfKcaOKVrsKUVZgv0BYTFbDUgjGLwGq7g7mtAfIptatH_ZlXe5cE1RKitUSKvgQg4D1G8410HjM3myryXt9vBYCdnYJibQz1jc-OFdzeocv8nQRZEgzFZFP5Yybx6_ot1uPxRrZ0lPRvvK-HZOOXpiFG3WlIXrn3jqKXkGw-gTqVZPU7m_vHG5w/s2390/marxh%208.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2390" data-original-width="2288" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhfKcaOKVrsKUVZgv0BYTFbDUgjGLwGq7g7mtAfIptatH_ZlXe5cE1RKitUSKvgQg4D1G8410HjM3myryXt9vBYCdnYJibQz1jc-OFdzeocv8nQRZEgzFZFP5Yybx6_ot1uPxRrZ0lPRvvK-HZOOXpiFG3WlIXrn3jqKXkGw-gTqVZPU7m_vHG5w/w612-h640/marxh%208.jpg" width="612" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Dress: <a href="https://matatraders.com/products/callie-long-sleeve-wrap-dress-retro-slate">Mata Traders</a></div><div style="text-align: left;">Leggings: Duluth Trading Company</div><div style="text-align: left;">Boots: CYDWOK</div><div style="text-align: left;">Accessories: <a href="https://twisted-silver.com/collections/bracelets/products/capture-mini-bracelet">Twisted Silver</a> bracelet (not this exact one), handmade daisy beaded bracelet</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">********************</div><div style="text-align: left;">Here is a close-up of my boots. I am super picky about shoes because of my bad leg and I can wear these shoes all day and not be in pain. No insoles or anything. Yes, I spent hundreds of dollars on these, but I wear them every day and they are amazing. (For those of you who read MBF for CBBC, I always think about how they are handmade!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGNAE-r2juDnmm6q6fqzYUH-LoXAFg3Z6SysYNj1gPhSuQdBKPTPG6v1WM9QI8kpOsHzxgNPZZkd8YcBt7bDcIWqC4C862CKXQeqQRoGub42u2ZVLftEEYgj8Ai-pE1ITa1PuF3e4_rbBzu494NZ1Kwj2sDuImEfHq3S22udbDG7pQDLjNBQCSWA/s4032/20240308_082115.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGNAE-r2juDnmm6q6fqzYUH-LoXAFg3Z6SysYNj1gPhSuQdBKPTPG6v1WM9QI8kpOsHzxgNPZZkd8YcBt7bDcIWqC4C862CKXQeqQRoGub42u2ZVLftEEYgj8Ai-pE1ITa1PuF3e4_rbBzu494NZ1Kwj2sDuImEfHq3S22udbDG7pQDLjNBQCSWA/w640-h480/20240308_082115.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Here are my Mary Janes. I took them to get resoled in January of this year and my cobbler said that his first ticket on them was from 2014, so they are at least a decade old. I wear them a lot. They've also been resoled and repaired a number of times.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirftTupYpwUObXZQ_MZXrwJbHac0BR6DikRLaHfHPB4lXJkPRxkCpCAaxX23eZLKwp_u96pR7SCsIhMD-2OLg4kyIGNBc-VB6eCltfxvpPCapJM2ZHs45cFukETzBlTaAAG7-WjKMiN-yiBf4iYxhS2M_4KA58pN3M3KQ-96DwtoIMJlaez1LhAw/s4032/20240311_084845.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirftTupYpwUObXZQ_MZXrwJbHac0BR6DikRLaHfHPB4lXJkPRxkCpCAaxX23eZLKwp_u96pR7SCsIhMD-2OLg4kyIGNBc-VB6eCltfxvpPCapJM2ZHs45cFukETzBlTaAAG7-WjKMiN-yiBf4iYxhS2M_4KA58pN3M3KQ-96DwtoIMJlaez1LhAw/w640-h480/20240311_084845.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">********************</div><div style="text-align: left;">In my office, I have a grey infinity scarf (winterweight), a lightweight pink scarf (summerweight), and a grey cardigan (from H&M that I bought in an emergency when I was underdressed during a summer trip) that I store in a cabinet in case I'm ever underdressed and cold. The cardigan is polyester and violates my natural fabric rule, but it was purchased before I had that rule in place.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdJCkXJBzwXlHx8OSLQajVPEGntYppwV0m7ryuOJ7ZtSezCZsdqk-3hj3C6KFQ6lMo2OJzEdJyTOxgu6zvSasZxerEJ09AaoToKfyOafanOtu7IczKlctwLIBzrI42FicPEQ1LxCLuLejO3a1lAYbvaQXh3PHTYwOLaF9mSmMrxlXhq32FBATNtA/s4032/20240312_150926.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdJCkXJBzwXlHx8OSLQajVPEGntYppwV0m7ryuOJ7ZtSezCZsdqk-3hj3C6KFQ6lMo2OJzEdJyTOxgu6zvSasZxerEJ09AaoToKfyOafanOtu7IczKlctwLIBzrI42FicPEQ1LxCLuLejO3a1lAYbvaQXh3PHTYwOLaF9mSmMrxlXhq32FBATNtA/w640-h480/20240312_150926.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">********************</div><div style="text-align: left;">I have two other three-quarter length sleeve dresses with pockets (see below) that I didn't wear this week, so I have a total of six "winter" dresses. I'd like one or two more to fill out my collection, but there's no rush on it since the season is winding down.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1udMZp8-yaORqcVd_1T9h_wSDjMlzb0MjZzCdHH8gMAp-Wwste9S4A3ozY0NsFsIC6YybNHjOWJG0wMKmhdMisXz-_Pz9iX78-UGRuakWilzX4tWSLeqB1i8qjKc5qxUCR64QtIsYIJgmmRxBe_cbOcUTVjv3yP8UIF3N0HGiRunZJIKDH96gyA/s4032/other%20dresses.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1udMZp8-yaORqcVd_1T9h_wSDjMlzb0MjZzCdHH8gMAp-Wwste9S4A3ozY0NsFsIC6YybNHjOWJG0wMKmhdMisXz-_Pz9iX78-UGRuakWilzX4tWSLeqB1i8qjKc5qxUCR64QtIsYIJgmmRxBe_cbOcUTVjv3yP8UIF3N0HGiRunZJIKDH96gyA/w480-h640/other%20dresses.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">On the left: <a href="https://www.betabrand.com/collections/womens-dresses">Betabrand</a> dress (from years ago, so they no longer stock it)</div><div style="text-align: left;">On the right: <a href="https://oconnellsclothing.com/oconnells-classic-audrey-dress-black-09241b.html">Audrey</a> dress from O'Connell's - This is 100% the most flattering dress I own. It doesn't have great hangar appeal, but it's amazing on me. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">And that's it. Dress, leggings, maybe a scarf. Bracelets. CYDWOK boots. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQERv0fwHjm3KcX9qn2n9YBhO5-kYCgy6AAhr1dPQ5AOeK7zy82WyxWjfqAY7ZaB9g1aT3wbc0MChoTTKoo04eiii5bAmf3Ix9iAPf9sa23fJK-jGwBYTh-3wbKt8KN5fyqK4bNW3xcu2_1wyFZ8_ORhS-rDigl6-Qm0Y3jTyM9QbvJIW16u_QSw/s4032/20240308_102850.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQERv0fwHjm3KcX9qn2n9YBhO5-kYCgy6AAhr1dPQ5AOeK7zy82WyxWjfqAY7ZaB9g1aT3wbc0MChoTTKoo04eiii5bAmf3Ix9iAPf9sa23fJK-jGwBYTh-3wbKt8KN5fyqK4bNW3xcu2_1wyFZ8_ORhS-rDigl6-Qm0Y3jTyM9QbvJIW16u_QSw/w640-h480/20240308_102850.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My "everyday" bracelets.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div style="text-align: left;">********************</div><div style="text-align: left;">Note that most weeks I do a lunchtime stretch class three days a week via Zoom wearing these clothes. Occasionally, I actually go to a yoga class at the student union for a 30 minute video and I do not change my clothes - I just wear my dress and leggings. People sometimes act like it's a big deal to wear a dress, but I swear to you that it's just as comfortable for me as my pajamas. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I have a handful of blazers and cardigans I will wear over dresses if I'm doing something formal like a conference or teaching (or if I'm just cold). Here they are.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN-_yUf3can7eXGry81NovG6PlkFDcPJQ-uV6tzWsKLS906f4963-uvi9IGuvvs3bGNIBwz69uwpzr95li5H45CaXwnXODsUTwZBLTdHmUehY_Ty3PY-nHMgfGiO7bIB7Gtq9IZ-0riAYCWbvnQchxlJMrrD9s0OxtdP9BPUwnVyfZAWSGxFKtsw/s2000/Blank%202%20Grids%20Collage%20(2).png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="2000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN-_yUf3can7eXGry81NovG6PlkFDcPJQ-uV6tzWsKLS906f4963-uvi9IGuvvs3bGNIBwz69uwpzr95li5H45CaXwnXODsUTwZBLTdHmUehY_Ty3PY-nHMgfGiO7bIB7Gtq9IZ-0riAYCWbvnQchxlJMrrD9s0OxtdP9BPUwnVyfZAWSGxFKtsw/w640-h640/Blank%202%20Grids%20Collage%20(2).png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Black cardigan: This is the one from White House Black Market from decades ago. I bought it at the WHBM at the Mall of American when I lived in Minnesota. (Also is polyester.)</div><div style="text-align: left;">Purple cardigan: <a href="https://www.salaamclothing.com/">Salaam Clothing</a> (maybe a decade old? - certainly not on their website anymore) (Also is polyester.)</div><div style="text-align: left;">Orange blazer:<a href="https://www.macys.com/shop/womens-clothing/inc-international-concepts-womens-apparel?id=3481"> I.N.C. </a>from Macy's - I bought this when I was on a work trip to Chicago years and years ago and I was very, very cold. The lining is shredded, but it's a cute piece.</div><div style="text-align: left;">Silver blazer: Ann Taylor from fourteen years ago - I can date this one because I bought it for my twin niece and nephew's <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2010/01/how-i-spent-my-money.html">baptism</a> and they are fifteen now. My nephew puked on it at the ceremony and you can still see the slight stain if you know what to look for. Hasn't stopped me from wearing that blazer about a million times since then. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXeOSGrlGEFUVSLznwau0DPbJS5zVsE3_UGubqyJz6PRd_UqfdEIULd2vZwgMrsnrTdBjOmGp_iDeWonWB0vDdW8eE0PPwVQUc4b_UMxOjpk2vHwsh_NHNJmwU3gKkZyjVkwAkFCYM1kXPbG77MHVfbDwQ3JnxKfm_xnfRkFMSe0GcHOPdbK1iUg/s4032/20240310_170453.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXeOSGrlGEFUVSLznwau0DPbJS5zVsE3_UGubqyJz6PRd_UqfdEIULd2vZwgMrsnrTdBjOmGp_iDeWonWB0vDdW8eE0PPwVQUc4b_UMxOjpk2vHwsh_NHNJmwU3gKkZyjVkwAkFCYM1kXPbG77MHVfbDwQ3JnxKfm_xnfRkFMSe0GcHOPdbK1iUg/w480-h640/20240310_170453.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I would definitely lint roll this before I left the house in it. It is clear I have a cat, right?</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div style="text-align: left;">This is a jacket from <a href="https://oconnellsclothing.com/womens/blazers-and-jackets.html">O'Connell's</a>. It goes amazingly well with just about any black dress, but when I pair it with the Audrey or Toad & Co. dress, it is sheer perfection.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">********************</div><div style="text-align: left;">I rarely pay full price for anything, outside of my shoes and leggings, and I could probably get the leggings on sale if I paid more attention. I think maybe my husband paid full price for my silver bracelet, but I wear it most days and have for years and years, so I think it's probably paid for itself. Everything else that I've shown here I bought on discount of one sort or another. I try to get clothes at end-of-season sales. (I know I should thrift more. The thing is that I live in a relatively low-income rural area and the thrift shops here are full of fast fashion junk with oddly high prices. I could drive an hour or so away for nicer places, but I literally do not have time to hunt down the "good" thrift shops and I have so far refused to make it a priority. I don't enjoy being in thrift stores and the process of clothes shopping is already painful enough.)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">********************</div><div style="text-align: left;">Now, I don't anticipate changing much about this as the weather gets warmer because the AC means my office is the same temperature. We'll see. Maybe I'll be doing this to talk about what I wear during the summer later on. Same uniform with eight short-sleeved dresses!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">********************</div><div style="text-align: left;">Do you have a work uniform? Does getting dressed in the morning require a lot of thought for you?</div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com39tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-9655796943152485692024-03-12T05:00:00.000-05:002024-03-12T05:00:00.135-05:00The Memory of Animals by Claire Fuller<p>Someone on the podcast <i>Sarah's Bookshelves</i> recommended T<i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62972519-the-memory-of-animals">he Memory of Animals</a></i> pretty persuasively, so I ordered it from the library and then proceeded to not read it for nine weeks. And it's due tomorrow, so I had to get to it. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2m0Px6JrI0qefkLSLUh1egya9KfIsSC1PKv-hkXega8UlCCHoQlhVZtBAqdpXMrOxOfIn6MfWf-vJx4nPXCYlJ60B3D0zE04XD0dFAXx3pbVIsOSLs220Ja65DIQfGwX8LoJbitzrBUlwiRf97qPavDRU6y4auxEbHIQyV1FuWzwG8YmURUkgpg/s1200/memory%20of%20animals.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="776" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2m0Px6JrI0qefkLSLUh1egya9KfIsSC1PKv-hkXega8UlCCHoQlhVZtBAqdpXMrOxOfIn6MfWf-vJx4nPXCYlJ60B3D0zE04XD0dFAXx3pbVIsOSLs220Ja65DIQfGwX8LoJbitzrBUlwiRf97qPavDRU6y4auxEbHIQyV1FuWzwG8YmURUkgpg/w414-h640/memory%20of%20animals.jpg" width="414" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div>Teffy lost her job working with the octopuses at an aquarium. There's a pandemic and things are getting pretty bad, so she signs up to be a volunteer in a clinical trial for a vaccine for the Dropsy virus. But the trial doesn't go well and Teffy and four other volunteers watch out the windows as London falls into chaos. Meanwhile, there's technology that allows Teffy to relive her memories and she spends more and more time in the past. </div><div><br /></div><div>Weird combination of octopus book (see <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2018/08/the-soul-of-octopus-by-sy-montgomery.html">The Soul of an Octopus</a></i> and <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/08/remarkably-bright-creatures-by-shelby.html">Remarkably Bright Creatures</a></i>) and pandemic book (see <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2018/10/station-eleven-by-emily-st-john-mandel.html">Station Eleven</a></i> and <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2022/04/hamnet-by-maggie-ofarrell.html">Hamnet</a></i>). The bit about reliving memories was weird, too. I mean, the book is weird. Like so weird that it's borderline incoherent? </div><div><br /></div><div>Okay, the parallel is that the survivors are like animals in a cage. The volunteers for the experiment are like the experiments on octopuses that Neffy witnessed. Fine. (I mean, let's not get into whether or not animals have a choice about it and the humans absolutely could have either not done the experiment or left the hospital when things got dodgy, but let's let Fuller have the parallels.) The additional parallel is that something something memory something something octopuses don't have a brain. I don't know. It's weak. Here's the conversation I imagine happened.</div><div><br /></div><div>Author: It's about survivors of a pandemic.</div><div>Agent: And...?</div><div>Author (thinks about Sy Montgomery and Shelby Van Pelt): And the main character works with octopuses.</div><div>Agent: What makes it unique?</div><div>Author: AND THERE'S VIRTUAL REALITY MEMORY.</div><div><br /></div><div>Oddly enough, I didn't hate this book. But I don't think it says as much as the author thinks it says. The characters are oddly flat, the writing is fine, but not spectacular, and I honestly want to figure out who it was that recommended this on the podcast and never really trust them again. Read <i>Station Eleven</i> if you want pandemic lit. 3.5/5 stars</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Things I looked up:</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Roberts radio</b> (page 10) - <a href="https://www.robertsradio.com/en-gb">Roberts</a> is a British company that makes cool looking retro radios. The company has been around since 1932, so presumably the radios they make were once cutting edge. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Crittall windows</b> (page 10) - Windows with gridded metal frames. </div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijvGkvolrH_JpaX7YbumALIxtzrNfMuizHQ02R-m74fIMsWThlLbZsYvLG3HlLdxAMPOMqcgRweuYrNcMITegmRiC7N560D_dBGlKc0PCRRajdZVLMVya0Uu0U7ai1hB3vzGjH0crHFEJAXt5ExJEehqWw4hl9UV9xX59J2G6Mwc9yg81gvGv5Sw/s738/crittall.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="435" data-original-width="738" height="378" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijvGkvolrH_JpaX7YbumALIxtzrNfMuizHQ02R-m74fIMsWThlLbZsYvLG3HlLdxAMPOMqcgRweuYrNcMITegmRiC7N560D_dBGlKc0PCRRajdZVLMVya0Uu0U7ai1hB3vzGjH0crHFEJAXt5ExJEehqWw4hl9UV9xX59J2G6Mwc9yg81gvGv5Sw/w640-h378/crittall.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><b>Antipaxos</b> (page 24) - A small island in Greece. It's almost embarrassing how often I have to admit my lacking my knowledge of geography is. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Hat mentions (<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/06/81-hat-in-books.html">why hats?</a>):</b></div><div><br /></div><div>I can just make out the shape of her, the arch of her <b>hat</b>. (page 76)</div><div><br /></div><div>It was something I'd looked forward to, enjoying the feeling of being the one the loud handsome man was waving his <b>hat</b> at, as though we both might have been almost famous. (page 132)</div><div><br /></div><div>Piper isn't wearing her <b>hat</b> and for the first time I see her hair - undercut at the sides and top styled up. (page 233)</div><div><br /></div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-72999824970300623752024-03-11T05:00:00.002-05:002024-03-11T05:00:00.141-05:00Week Six: My Brilliant Friend CBBC, Wrap-Up<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/week-1-my-brilliant-friend-cbbc.html">Week One</a>, Prologue & Childhood<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/week-two-my-brilliant-friend-cbbc.html">Week Two</a>, Adolescence Chapters 1 - 16<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/week-three-my-brilliant-friend-cbbc.html">Week Three</a>, Adolescence Chapters 17-30<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/week-four-my-brilliant-friend-cbbc.html">Week Four</a>, Adolescence Chapters 31-45<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/03/week-five-my-brilliant-friend-cbbc.html">Week Five</a>, Adolescence Chapters 46 - 61</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">*****************</div><div style="text-align: left;">Welcome to our wrap-up for the Cool Bloggers Book Club (CBBC) for <i>My Brilliant Friend</i>. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqxWFkfOTs7QUETl2JVEsFvYWC8zPGIxgb-AOCYi-4xhWuJ6SG6mkl42mho-V38Qjf9w4tgCPYGnSErbIXtjotHdmNttyV52M5MB-xLjqq0pUbVgIjroWJKvjtvYKjtPG40wUJ3NbhqTvzLNsPGwPtaqG6_6MIvVfoNv5DDPoVjTZuIrdtI7n-4g/s500/CBBC%20%233.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqxWFkfOTs7QUETl2JVEsFvYWC8zPGIxgb-AOCYi-4xhWuJ6SG6mkl42mho-V38Qjf9w4tgCPYGnSErbIXtjotHdmNttyV52M5MB-xLjqq0pUbVgIjroWJKvjtvYKjtPG40wUJ3NbhqTvzLNsPGwPtaqG6_6MIvVfoNv5DDPoVjTZuIrdtI7n-4g/w640-h640/CBBC%20%233.png" width="640" /></a></div>********************<div>Did you all know that, in addition to being an HBO television show, <i>My Brilliant Friend</i> has been adapted into a <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/123444101-my-brilliant-friend">graphic novel</a>? Is there anyone out there who is surprised to learn that I immediately grabbed a copy from the library as soon as I heard this news? Also, is anyone surprised that there are five copies in our library system and all of them are available? </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcKRl7Svazr5dnt9crKVLzT72awa5Pmf4_32-pGZPZsWYIJOEwyR4HHsEzF66zOnOjAr0W2AbvTxal8-pppIpnqIqIOv8uZKGAEuNI1WULS_LXJIZ6YYpjU4QeQlug6VqqhqGqak0owl_b7YA93jyoVO5pFovDwq9wMGW3kiF22rLnXOwHKWoflA/s500/gncover.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="380" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcKRl7Svazr5dnt9crKVLzT72awa5Pmf4_32-pGZPZsWYIJOEwyR4HHsEzF66zOnOjAr0W2AbvTxal8-pppIpnqIqIOv8uZKGAEuNI1WULS_LXJIZ6YYpjU4QeQlug6VqqhqGqak0owl_b7YA93jyoVO5pFovDwq9wMGW3kiF22rLnXOwHKWoflA/w486-h640/gncover.jpg" width="486" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1w4EreRtnkIJ7xy6j2ILWin03d7J3smjQhxIG0fqTTAjCmIFE8qTUsvRNxZ_FjRdQBsIOU8fdUxy4otePFFMN0FxZCPlcgKOuObXD5z9DnwCHY_mR2ml5v7mwUyhwv41mOTnHhsdi61Bz6XT5IWJsnxDSo9-KwRNAdngpKGP3RDL62yVlTzofwQ/s1013/courtesy_of_europa_editions.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1013" data-original-width="760" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1w4EreRtnkIJ7xy6j2ILWin03d7J3smjQhxIG0fqTTAjCmIFE8qTUsvRNxZ_FjRdQBsIOU8fdUxy4otePFFMN0FxZCPlcgKOuObXD5z9DnwCHY_mR2ml5v7mwUyhwv41mOTnHhsdi61Bz6XT5IWJsnxDSo9-KwRNAdngpKGP3RDL62yVlTzofwQ/w480-h640/courtesy_of_europa_editions.png" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.pw.org/content/the_written_image_my_brilliant_friend_0">Source</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div>****************</div><div><b style="font-family: inherit;">MBF Questions to ponder:</b></div><div><b><br /></b><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">1) Which character in the book are you most like? Why? </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />2) <a href="https://girlinaboyhouse.com/">Nicole</a> made this comment last week: </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;">I had an epiphany when I started this part, and I actually went back and reread some of the previous chapters: I was reading this all wrong. When I read it like a regular book, I found myself absolutely slogging. When I read it as a symbol for Italy, post-World War II, it was fascinating. I read it as all the characters were symbolizing different parts of Italy - education (Elena), beauty and fashion industry (Lila), automotive, agricultural, export industries, etc. Also - the mafia. I felt like this was foreshadowing for the mafia's hand in the running of the country. When I read it like that, I felt that it was very powerful and interesting. When I read it just as a story, not at all. I wish I had thought to do that at the beginning of the book, it would have made for a much better reading experience for me.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><br />What do you think of this reading of the book? </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;">3) Let's discuss Tina and Nu, the dolls from the beginning of the book. Do you think that the way the girls played with the dolls is reflective of the violent, uncertain home lives they had at home? Is this why Lila was so cruel in their play?</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;">4) In general, this novel seems pretty dark, but there are moments of happiness, like when Lenù first goes to the beach. What are other moments of happiness or levity that come to mind and how do those moments balance some of the darkness in this book?</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;">5) Is this truly a story about "frenemies" or is it a story about friends who actually encourage one another to be the best that they can be? </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;">6) This book was much more polarizing than <i>A Tree Grows in Brooklyn</i>, our first CBBC read, despite a lot of similar themes of urban poverty, the importance of education, and tough family circumstances. What made this one so much more challenging? </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;">7) For those of you who haven't read any of the other books (it's a quartet), what do you think happens in the following books? What's going to happen with these girls?</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;">8) What scene/quote/character from the book seems like it's the most memorable to you? </span></span></div><p>****************</p><p><b>CBBC questions to ponder:</b></p><p>1) What book should we read next? (It probably won't be until summer. Don't worry - no homework until then!)</p><p>2) I'm still trying to figure out the pacing for these book clubs. Was this too many pages, too few pages, or just the perfect number of pages each week?</p><p>3) Is there any other constructive feedback you'd like to offer about the running of CBBC? Please don't say stop talking about hats - I honestly cannot do that for you!</p><p>****************</p><p>And that is our first quarter CBBC in the can. I appreciate all of you who participated (especially those of you who didn't like the book!) and I cannot say how much it means to me that you all read and post and send me photos. As some of you may know, things are challenging for me in my personal life and having these smart, fun discussions about a book I really love has been a great distraction from less fun things in my life. Here's to another successful session of CBBC!</p></div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com32tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-2747370788882994042024-03-08T05:00:00.001-06:002024-03-08T05:00:00.134-06:00Mood Reading Q&A<p>As some of you may remember, I am slowly working my way through the <i>Books Unbound</i> backlist. This is a podcast where two young Canadian women talk about books and their bookish lives. They are young and their taste in books is wildly different from mine, but they are so enthusiastic about what they love that I can't resist listening. Their 96th episode "<a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/booksunbound/episodes/96---The-Mood-Reader-Tag--Are-We-Mood-Readers-e15jgle">The Mood Reader Tag!</a>" is just them answering questions about mood reading and I thought it was so fun that I'm going to ask you the same questions. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24yPQnaYBobikT-moN6-luKwLtdQGDmoeb7tjYTCQ-ALdprGDp38OVsdPwD8Usss8pYMBKYGJYRPrPh2QCUrTq-_TUbau6KLk816AoVGjT_83MNJAiFi7B0yCLnTEE9STsy1zaBxLciDNBACKLyq2-QVUFAlqYn3Xm8diq0vKQTrkek0m7mWluQ/s4032/20240305_062507.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24yPQnaYBobikT-moN6-luKwLtdQGDmoeb7tjYTCQ-ALdprGDp38OVsdPwD8Usss8pYMBKYGJYRPrPh2QCUrTq-_TUbau6KLk816AoVGjT_83MNJAiFi7B0yCLnTEE9STsy1zaBxLciDNBACKLyq2-QVUFAlqYn3Xm8diq0vKQTrkek0m7mWluQ/w480-h640/20240305_062507.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This photo is 100% unrelated to the post topic, but LOOK HOW ADORABLE Hannah is walking with her stick. </td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>1) How do you define mood reading and are you a mood reader?</b></p><p>I think I'm more of a whimsy reader than a mood reader. It has nothing to with my mood, really, but more of what I think I should be reading at that time. On a nice sunny day, I do not think I should be reading a gothic thriller. When I was at my mother-in-law's deathbed, it didn't seem appropriate to be reading a trashy romance novel. So, basically, it's not about <i>mood</i>, necessarily, but about outside circumstances. Does that even make sense to anyone else?</p><p><b>2) Do you have a TBR? Do you stick to it?</b></p><p>I have lists that are guidelines. So, I loosely am reading books for the <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/12/pop-sugar-2024-reading-challenge-plan.html">Pop Sugar Reading Challenge</a> and the <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/n713om/rfantasys_top_books_by_women_2021_results/">Top Fantasy Books by Women</a> list from r/fantasy. But then someone will rave about a book on a blog, podcast, or someplace else and suddenly I'm reading that instead. And I certainly don't read books <i>in order</i> on my TBR. That would completely go against my whimsy reading.</p><p><b>3) Do you cry reading books? If so, what books have made you cry?</b></p><p>I don't cry often, but <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29475447-a-closed-and-common-orbit">A Closed and Common Orbit </a></i>made me cry so hard I had a hard time breathing. Also, basically every <a href="https://www.katherinestone.com/books">Katherine Stone</a> book I've ever read has made me cry and I admit that there's a type of sentimentality to those books that really gets to me. And I remember crying at a lot of books as a child - <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10365.Where_the_Red_Fern_Grows">Where the Red Fern Grows</a></i>, <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3008.A_Little_Princess?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_17">A Little Princess</a></i>, <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24178.Charlotte_s_Web?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_15">Charlotte's Web</a></i>, and <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2998.The_Secret_Garden?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_17">The Secret Garden</a></i> are examples.</p><p><b>4) Do you use reading to escape, learn, or critically reflect?</b></p><p>I read to escape. I read a lot of romance and fantasy for this very reason. Reading is entertainment for me and I don't want my reading to stress me out.</p><p><b>5) What is a book that made you laugh out loud?</b></p><p><i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/12/the-comeback-by-lily-chu.html">The Comeback</a></i> by Lily Chu. The scene where she's singing "Paradise City" nearly made me pee my pants. </p><p><b>6) What is a book that you don't really know how to feel about?</b></p><p><i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/01/a-spell-of-winter-by-helen-dunmore.html">A Spell of Winter</a></i> by Helen Dunmore. I think about this book So Much, but I don't really understand it, I don't think. It's a war book and then it's a book about siblings fucking and then my mind explodes. Also, can I get a what what for <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2018/01/lincoln-in-bardo-by-george-saunders.html">Lincoln in the Bardo</a></i> by George Saunders, which is a book I originally read for my book club and thought was meh, but haunts my dreams now. Do I like this book? I don't know. </p><p><b>7) Are you more likely to read on a sunny day or a cloudy day?</b></p><p>I read every day regardless of the weather. I read first thing in the morning and right before bed and most days I read other times, too. Ideal conditions for reading would be a day off where it's raining. That's a guilt-free reading day, as far as I'm concerned!</p><p><b>8) Do you usually "set the mood" when you read? Candles, lights, etc.?</b></p><p>I do not. I do the vast majority of my reading in bed and that is as cozy as it gets, but I don't do candles or mood lights or a special chair or anything.</p><p><b>9) Can you leap from book to book or do you need buffer time between books?</b></p><p>I leap. I finish a book, walk into the mudroom and get another one off my library pile, and start reading a new book. </p><p><br /></p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-70064911762963730552024-03-07T05:00:00.001-06:002024-03-07T05:00:00.149-06:00Valdemar: Family of Spies by Mercedes Lackey<p> Valdemar saga (in chronological order of the world, not order of publication):</p><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2022/10/valdemar-mage-wars-by-mercedes-lackey.html">The Mage Wars</a><br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/01/valdemar-last-herald-mage-by-mercedes.html">The Last Herald-Mage</a><br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/03/valdemar-collegium-chronicles-by.html">Collegium Chronicles</a><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/08/valdemar-herald-spy-by-mercedes-lackey.html">The Herald Spy</a></div><div><br /></div><div>We are back in Valdemar! I took a break after The Herald Spy series because I am over Perfect Mags and his wife, Perfect Amily, but time has moved forward, they have three children, and the oldest, Perry, is a young teen who has the gift of Mindspeech with Animals. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYwVJhE_a1QTPa0C0yFSYbrI3goVTjbIFdMZnCcXOTPS9NrPU5PXLz2-B3vg-meREkPQipVGHluIYtNvSQ0RZnxcNYLgW9gyfjcbQ-wdaLEaIhpl_YKxQuDIAVKFCNdNXn-k3bifjsMs85NNy3iIrSERCSPRJ3eQjYMp6YMcLPiuEvnBkWChDaZw/s475/hills%20have%20spies.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="315" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYwVJhE_a1QTPa0C0yFSYbrI3goVTjbIFdMZnCcXOTPS9NrPU5PXLz2-B3vg-meREkPQipVGHluIYtNvSQ0RZnxcNYLgW9gyfjcbQ-wdaLEaIhpl_YKxQuDIAVKFCNdNXn-k3bifjsMs85NNy3iIrSERCSPRJ3eQjYMp6YMcLPiuEvnBkWChDaZw/w424-h640/hills%20have%20spies.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br /><div>There have been reports from the borderlands that people from Valdemar have gone missing and Mags decides its time to take his young son with him to investigate? WTF, Mags? Dangerous things are happening here. Anyway, Perry bonds with a dog-like creature with human-level intelligence named Larral. Eventually Perry and Larral separate from Mags and they end up trapped in a city run by a crazypants cannibal and Perry runs the dog kennel. My summary makes this sound boring. It wasn't boring at all. Perry is so much more interesting of a character than Mags. I'm so happy to be spending time with him and Larral. 4/5 stars</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Lines of note:</b></div><div><i>It would be nice to be a cat</i>, he thought. <i>Everything is simple for them. Food or not-food. Thing to play with or thing to ignore. Favored human or not-favored human</i>. (page 52)</div><div>Preach it. In my next life, I want to come back as a pampered housecat.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>:I cannot smell any spirits,: </i>Larral objected.</div><div><i>:...Wait. You can smell spirits?:</i></div><div><i>:Of course I can. So can dogs and wolves and foxes. Cats see them.: </i>(page 191)</div><div>I feel like Lackey must have been living with the platonic ideal of a cat when she wrote this book. If you are a cat owner, you know how cats just randomly stare at spots on the wall/ceiling. What are they even looking at? Obviously it's spirits. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Thing I looked up:</b></div><div>hackamore - a type of animal headgear that doesn't have a bit</div><div><br /><b>Hat mentions (<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/06/81-hat-in-books.html">why hats?</a>):</b></div><div>None</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi27iIiXW5yRZM-lq2mPr0DI2qqSCMkqXkspyEU1plOeSU_epPl2uLfFgLnPM6EbbHriIX_A5-4czq7Y-KXMVyr7gvYhXiqXLYAlMb6RW_VcdszfyuGZ_znFFoGEYsIPoSVUYdf1T_jkeWbX1KqGQ3ia9LjR-jPdCOnsHDUSfQDM9HO0tD2nLBrug/s500/41839483.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi27iIiXW5yRZM-lq2mPr0DI2qqSCMkqXkspyEU1plOeSU_epPl2uLfFgLnPM6EbbHriIX_A5-4czq7Y-KXMVyr7gvYhXiqXLYAlMb6RW_VcdszfyuGZ_znFFoGEYsIPoSVUYdf1T_jkeWbX1KqGQ3ia9LjR-jPdCOnsHDUSfQDM9HO0tD2nLBrug/w424-h640/41839483.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Up next in the Family of Spies is the middle child, a daughter named Abi. Her book is <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41839483-eye-spy">Eye Spy.</a></i> I mean, it's actually Abidela, but that's a dumb name, right? Anyway, at the beginning of the book, Abi doesn't seem to have any magic like everyone else. She's seemingly cool with this because no one in these book series ever has feelings of jealousy or anxiety. In general, I like Valdemar, but Lackey's perfectly rational and perfectly behaving teenage characters annoy me to no end. <div><br /></div><div>ANYWAY.</div><div><br /></div><div>Abi and Princess Kat are running an errand for the queen and Abi senses that a bridge they are about to cross is going to collapse and she and Kat manage to get everyone off the bridge to save their lives. That's how we learn that Abi has a Gift for sensing structural weakness? I dunno. In my head I called it Architecture Magic. </div><div><br /></div><div>(Also, yo. A bridge collapse on page four? Ugh. I was in Minneapolis when the I-35W bridge collapsed and I was sweating reading about a fictional bridge collapse. Maybe I should deal with my trauma from an event from more than fifteen years ago.)</div><div><br /></div><div>Just like her brother Perry in <i>The Hills Have Spies</i>, Abi is soon sent out to the borderlands to help folks with infrastructure projects. Of course there are bad guys and Abi has to deal with them. Also, Abi is asexual? Maybe? </div><div><br /></div><div>I dunno. Abi's kind of boring and as much as I love to talk about crumbling infrastructure, there was a lot of talk about bridges, dams, and roads failing and this girl here does not need that in her life. 3.5/5 stars</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Line of note:</b></div><div>...she reckoned that for every one happy marriage there were a dozen that ranged from "distantly friendly" to "armed truce." (page 2)</div><div>What a terrible thing to think about the institution of marriage. But now that I think about it, maybe it's true. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Hat mentions (<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/06/81-hat-in-books.html">why hats?</a>):</b></div><div>"So you didn't know that Bardic Trainees have leave to set up with a <b>hat</b> and play at the Fair?"</div><div>"Set up . . . with a <b>hat</b>?" the girl replied, bewildered. </div><div>So Abi explained how all the Bardic Trainees had permission to come down to the Fair during the day that they were given off from class, and after classes were finished for the day, set themselves up with a collection basket - or <b>hat</b> - and play for whatever money people would throw into it. (page 89) </div><div><br /></div><div>"...Most people don't bother with a <b>hat</b>..." (page 90)</div><div><br /></div><div>By the nice layer of coppers in the straw <b>hat</b> she had put out, Lee had found a very receptive audience. (page 97)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQuCwF5glC5nAmQKcpuvNJ54O_qWRkmaolte44VrO2gJH9gr7mSXd1pxyGgVcfDNWXXHCjMjpq4mLEdh1q6CwsDrvy1Uvn3pf5f8AXSHj9YFNW_zPYa5bDoGMJMAh3M2dSlGqxa-k7dWJkDyvNnWU4H-IRhDNfUvyZRSUHcZ9aWWBRzYjtjo2C1g/s500/spjy%20spy%20again.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQuCwF5glC5nAmQKcpuvNJ54O_qWRkmaolte44VrO2gJH9gr7mSXd1pxyGgVcfDNWXXHCjMjpq4mLEdh1q6CwsDrvy1Uvn3pf5f8AXSHj9YFNW_zPYa5bDoGMJMAh3M2dSlGqxa-k7dWJkDyvNnWU4H-IRhDNfUvyZRSUHcZ9aWWBRzYjtjo2C1g/w424-h640/spjy%20spy%20again.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><div>Up next is <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52954315-spy-spy-again">Spy, Spy Again</a></i> where Mags and Amily's youngest child, Tory, must go save a kidnapped distant cousin. Tory has the gift of Farsight, but only when he's in conjunction with the King's middle child, Kee. Together the two of them head off to save the distant cousin. </div></div><div><br /></div><div>Do you mean to tell me that in each of these three books Mags and Amily end up sending their children off to foreign countries? Yes, yes, they do. Do you mean to tell me that in each of these books their children learn about magical powers they possess that they didn't know they possessed? Yes, yes, they do. </div><div><br /></div><div>What I'm saying is that this trilogy got repetitive, yo. BUT! Guess what? They introduced some cool magical creatures in this book and I was down with that. Eh. I'm glad that we're moving away from Mags and his family in the next Valdemar trilogy. </div><div><br /></div><div>Once again I'll note that Lackey's teenage boy is remarkably emotional aware in this book. When his best friend, <i>who he relies on to do magic</i>, suddenly gets his own magic and falls in love and can never return to their shared native country, Tory is aware of his own jealousy and anger, but does absolutely nothing about it because he's so rational in his interrogation of his feelings. I just want someone in this saga to make a dumb mistake at some point. I would not have handled this very well when I was a teenager. 3.5/5 stars</div><div><br /><b>Line of note:</b></div><div>"<i>Love.</i> That's fine for fancy songs and theater and the nobly born, but people like us need to be practical." </div><div>...</div><div>"I'd marry an older woman," Derdan said. "Long as she's brisk enough to work the shop and the house and brings some money of her own to the arrangement. She's bound to be grateful, see, especially if she's an old maid, and if she's too old for children, like Birk said, I can always adopt a couple useful foundlings to take my name and work the shop just like blood-born. I'd marry an ugly woman, too, if she's nice-tempered, smart, and good to be around a good cook," he continued stoutly. "Same reason. Bound to be grateful, and no worry about her canoodling either. Man eats a lot more than he beds a woman. And it ain't a face I'm thinking about in bed, anyway..." (page 211)</div><div><br /></div><div>Boy, if this is the the tone of young adult literature in modern times, no wonder kids these days aren't getting married.</div><div><br /><b>What I looked up:</b></div><div>apport (page 114 for the first of many, many times) - Our distant cousin apports a lot of food in this book and I learned it means "paranormal transference of an article from one place to another." </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Hat mentions: </b></div><div>As for "free" entertainment that relied on coins dropped in a <b>hat</b>. . . there was none of that. (page 56)</div><div><br /></div><div>"Don't think to have it stitched together so you can take it on and off like a <b>hat</b>." (page 163)</div><div><br /></div><div>...Tory found that the headwrap kept his head a lot cooler than even a <b>hat</b>. (page 214)</div><div>Have any of you ever found a hat <i>cooling</i>? I've only found them to be sweltering, particularly in the summer. I have a wide-brimmed straw hat to wear during the summer and my hair is always plastered with sweat when I take it off. It's more for keeping the sun off than cooling. I did not understand this sentence. </div><div><br /></div><div>*******************</div><div>Overall, I haven't enjoyed the Mags books as much as I did the first couple of trilogies of this world, but I do like being in Valdemar. </div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-37657305892475611332024-03-06T05:00:00.001-06:002024-03-06T05:00:00.343-06:00What I Spent, February 2024<p>I am having a bit of an internal struggle here about what counts in various categories. I had a dentist appointment and I counted the money I spent for that as "health" because I took the money out of my HSA for it. However, I paid for my fitness classes out of my checking account, so I categorized those as "fitness." I feel like they're really sort of the same, but somehow they seem different. I don't know. Do you have any areas that are problematic to categorize?</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0kFHrPYAEck_s2c_UHsJJxG_EIZQR2V1IicGFraj9Yp-EQnP85t4E8O77HHJSPqoz0fcUp0sVwFW9Vkww8RjvmCe6vkqvu_KFmSXJ9TUUxx8cBF2SZ7CylrFEgx-6yb7x1NVHUP758sMsmXiMzlirEvYHx_DJYG5PTBK_8KqzWtmJ6rv4eFkrPg/s732/feb%2024.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="448" data-original-width="732" height="392" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0kFHrPYAEck_s2c_UHsJJxG_EIZQR2V1IicGFraj9Yp-EQnP85t4E8O77HHJSPqoz0fcUp0sVwFW9Vkww8RjvmCe6vkqvu_KFmSXJ9TUUxx8cBF2SZ7CylrFEgx-6yb7x1NVHUP758sMsmXiMzlirEvYHx_DJYG5PTBK_8KqzWtmJ6rv4eFkrPg/w640-h392/feb%2024.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><b>Groceries (29.6%)</b> - Roughly the same as last month. The only thing is that my husband paid for a very spendy trip to Costco instead of me, so this should probably be higher. </p><p><b>Pets (14.1%)</b> - Honestly, the prices just keep going up. Four years ago, the exact same cat food for Zelda was roughly $42 and this month I paid more that $73. </p><p><b>Health (11.7%)</b> - I paid for a periodontist appointment. This money came out of my HSA, but it's still money out of my pocket.</p><p><b>Cars (10.2%)</b> - I bought gas for one of the cars and took our newer car for an oil change/tire rotation. </p><p><b>Clothes (8.9%)</b> - I purchased a few new dresses for work that were on clearance as places make way for warmer weather clothing. This is part of me moving towards a uniform for work and I'll be doing a longer post about my work clothes later on this month. I think at this point to complete my work wardrobe I could use one more sleeved dress, a pair or two of work appropriate leggings, and 2-3 cardigans and/or structured jackets. Maaaaybe another pair of dark jeans, but I'm trying to steer away from jeans because I always wear through them so quickly. I'm quite intentional about my wardrobe. </p><p><b>Gifts (7.6%)</b> - This seems more brutal than it is. I had to buy cards for Valentine's Day AND St. Patrick's Day this month and I had to buy a roll of stamps. It added up pretty quickly.</p><p><b>Donations (6.1%)</b> - I made a donation to our public library and to a Go Fund Me for a friend in need.</p><p><b>Bills (3.8%)</b> - Car and home insurance.</p><p><b>Fitness (2.0%)</b> - I paid for some fitness classes.</p><p><b>Miscellaneous (2.0%)</b> - A couple of things for around the house that don't really fit any category.</p><p><b>Savings (1.6%)</b> - Egads. I need to do better here. </p><p><b>Eating out (0.7%)</b> - I stopped for coffee (technically a decaf americano) a few times this month. </p><p>*******************</p><p>What did you spend the biggest chunk of your money on last month?</p><p><br /></p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-59765383463568506572024-03-05T05:00:00.001-06:002024-03-05T05:00:00.147-06:00February 2024 Accountability Buddy<div style="text-align: left;">I didn't quite make my goals this month, but I gave it the old college try. I also am sort of struggling with motivation, so I did more yoga this month than I normally would, but I'm going to give myself a break and be kind and say that at least I did something most days instead of nothing. </div><div style="text-align: left;">*******************</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Thursday, February 1</b><br />23-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0q2K-ot_R4">day 19</a>)</div><div style="text-align: left;">10-minute vinyasa <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CuK3HxBKUI">flow</a> - All fun and games until she said "and let's move into this headstand" - lolz</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Friday, February 2</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class at lunchtime*</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Saturday, February 3</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class (in-person!)</div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aCNiRAyOlI">day 20</a>)</div><div style="text-align: left;">20-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTvFko3tOKY">day 21</a>)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Sunday, February 4</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">22-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1VJBw0vL_Q">day 22</a>)</div><div style="text-align: left;">10-minute Yoga with Adriene for <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3-gKPNyrTA&t=11s">Neck, Shoulders, and Chest</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Monday, February 5</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class at lunchtime</div><div style="text-align: left;">30-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfjo2dCuU9s">day 23</a>)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Tuesday, February 6</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class at lunchtime</div><div style="text-align: left;">45-minute body blast at the community center</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgShaUcM-p7n4Hw1WQpplCRWOpsIBu3ezeyx5nrtvYFq64drvrxmQyQt4RODHxJXV4u0SuLrO9LSXLhOFFMYOzgLelr9-PofeT-YK-3hNr2noOlvRczIJ6quefv_nDQM8SkZ1u3TOIv_PaPHGY3VUPYkOjl-skQkj6M7Bx5Huul2kkwrDIwxOtdjQ/s4032/20240206_172800.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgShaUcM-p7n4Hw1WQpplCRWOpsIBu3ezeyx5nrtvYFq64drvrxmQyQt4RODHxJXV4u0SuLrO9LSXLhOFFMYOzgLelr9-PofeT-YK-3hNr2noOlvRczIJ6quefv_nDQM8SkZ1u3TOIv_PaPHGY3VUPYkOjl-skQkj6M7Bx5Huul2kkwrDIwxOtdjQ/w480-h640/20240206_172800.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Wednesday, February 7</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">30-minute <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDq_qMrWRZI">total body</a> with Sydney Cummings</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Thursday, February 8</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Day off</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Friday, February 9</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">25-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1jKp2mZkSQ">day 24</a>)</div><div style="text-align: left;">5-minute <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqFniT-Oyt8">Yoga for Sleep</a> - I don't love when I have to do my workout right before bed, but sometimes it's the only time I can fit it in during a day. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Saturday, February 10</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">35-minute <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qC-WkhbqvxQ">cardio</a> from BurpeeGirl - I like that this workout had no repeats. Also, this was a particularly halfassed workout, but I guess halfass is better than no ass.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Sunday, February 11</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">23-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRNdD9c7HMc">day 25</a>) - She sang to Benji the Dog at the beginning of this video and it was the most adorable thing</div><div style="text-align: left;">10-minute deep yoga <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIcjAEs18TQ">stretch</a> - the woman who does the voiceover in this video has the voice of an angel</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Monday, February 12</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class at lunchtime</div><div style="text-align: left;">30-minute WERQ (dance) class</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Tuesday, February 13</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class at lunchtime</div><div style="text-align: left;">30-minute <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eU1_z3eOqho">total body</a> Sydney Cummings</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Wednesday, February 14</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">17-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc27Unjv_tM">day 26</a>)</div><div style="text-align: left;">25-minute <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRuHAXxzteE">power yoga</a> - some of these poses are not for beginners </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Thursday, February 15-Saturday, February 17</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Off. I had a terrible reaction to a vaccine and spent most of Friday in bed and Saturday I was nervous to try too much.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Sunday, February 18</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">19-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-j9o8sxTnbs">day 27</a>)</div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfqsoElm5cc">flow</a> with Cole Chance yoga - I really liked this video. Interesting poses and transitions. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Monday, February 19</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class at lunchtime</div><div style="text-align: left;">30-minute Werq (dance) class</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Tuesday, February 20</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class at lunchtime</div><div style="text-align: left;">After work I went for a run! Outside! It was so lovely. When I came inside it was 46 degrees, so I think high 40s/50s are the best time for me to run. (It was verrrrry slow, but fun.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLZoNz22qCHpNWPONMnj0nrrlJcvrullzN3TjMTK5oZi_Qb9S9qY2bx3gD8G4_5qs1dYnEkftl1jgHxguoBplyZ-pCJKmB9sI7N_Bsx_szsjNNxRPf-M3OEQhtBP3zE0LV2I4OlNYpw0jcqUxtXTmudeRm28VRFC1cvnANGq6h1pYGqytdsXVmJA/s2000/Blank%20Circle%20Collage%20Template.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="2000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLZoNz22qCHpNWPONMnj0nrrlJcvrullzN3TjMTK5oZi_Qb9S9qY2bx3gD8G4_5qs1dYnEkftl1jgHxguoBplyZ-pCJKmB9sI7N_Bsx_szsjNNxRPf-M3OEQhtBP3zE0LV2I4OlNYpw0jcqUxtXTmudeRm28VRFC1cvnANGq6h1pYGqytdsXVmJA/w640-h640/Blank%20Circle%20Collage%20Template.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Wednesday, February 21</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">25-minute Yoga with Adriene <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJOCGSwB8v4">bedtime yoga</a></div><div style="text-align: left;">5-minute moving <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OePdHKhCwpc">meditation</a> - it's basically useless since there are no words, so I had to keep yanking my neck to look at the screen - it was good for me, though, because then I just went off script doing my own thing until the five minutes was up</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Thursday, February 22</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">30-minute yoga class at lunchtime - There's a yoga class on Thursdays at our student union. It's free! It's just them showing a video from YouTube. I haven't been able to do it because of schedule conflicts, but I fit it in today. Just me in my work clothes doing a downward facing dog.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdDszBFyfYbMvDZFdcsRemdLKkDctACfWcNupLz1JnBZ8nbFBHAX8Nh9ejgf08UPsgKAiBRTqrvuCp9rcnJ-26dE_2xDNbAqLNCauJ3LxCewR-PqjAN1Q_0249PC3GWE3UUypU84nZdBqW0mSUHmuzzwSQDsN87ldPpPSsRTwxDKSQ9-MKZrYx-A/s4032/20240222_123451.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdDszBFyfYbMvDZFdcsRemdLKkDctACfWcNupLz1JnBZ8nbFBHAX8Nh9ejgf08UPsgKAiBRTqrvuCp9rcnJ-26dE_2xDNbAqLNCauJ3LxCewR-PqjAN1Q_0249PC3GWE3UUypU84nZdBqW0mSUHmuzzwSQDsN87ldPpPSsRTwxDKSQ9-MKZrYx-A/w480-h640/20240222_123451.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Friday, February 23</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class at lunchtime</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Saturday, February 24</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">30-minute Caroline Girvan (Iron series - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCxNnWW2zB8">day 1</a>) - legs</div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvX-N5c0pVA">day 28</a>) - I was feeling lightheaded (maybe not enough water today?), so the sun salutations were not working for me today. I'll try again tomorrow. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Sunday, February 25</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">20-minute Yoga with Adriene - finished that video from yesterday</div><div style="text-align: left;">28-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_j0zxr9RZwM">day 29</a>)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Monday, February 26</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">30-minute Werq (dance) class</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Tuesday, February 27</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">15-minute stretch class at lunchtime</div><div style="text-align: left;">30-minute Caroline Girvan (Iron series - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tczVC2rRO7U">day 2</a>) - arms</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Wednesday, February 28</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">50-minute Yoga with Adriene (Breath - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVwyEtS_7OQ">day 30</a>) - The music was super distracting in this video. I recommend muting it. Overall, I like the Breath 30-day series, but the videos were so inconsistent in length (some were only 15 minutes! this one was 50 minutes!) that it was hard to fit in sometimes. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgkSOHb_fVkKugAI1ltiRAC1dnmeX6YTByEEcM6-pzEeujMSiKg0LNjY2dU_sw9jqiSV4tJ-2FYOX4fAd3p3CNy8XIuxLpP7JfoV_2DhjuKKXxtOy0254UdwPKgMa1Xnjmg7SpFbmk-R1OocHYZWSxMMydVmpPXBx3Gul0R-Pt_pID5bBDabX62fw" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="619" data-original-width="1105" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgkSOHb_fVkKugAI1ltiRAC1dnmeX6YTByEEcM6-pzEeujMSiKg0LNjY2dU_sw9jqiSV4tJ-2FYOX4fAd3p3CNy8XIuxLpP7JfoV_2DhjuKKXxtOy0254UdwPKgMa1Xnjmg7SpFbmk-R1OocHYZWSxMMydVmpPXBx3Gul0R-Pt_pID5bBDabX62fw=w640-h358" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at Benji just chillin' on Adriene's blanket!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Thursday, February 29</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Day off</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Totals: 22/29 (75.9%) days</div><div style="text-align: left;">13 days yoga</div><div style="text-align: left;">10 days strength/cardio</div><div style="text-align: left;">9 short 15-minute stretch classes at lunchtime</div><div style="text-align: left;"><div>****************</div><div>*Our local healthcare group does free 15-minute stretch classes via Zoom three times a week. Come join us! It's free! It's fun! We talk about food in the chat almost every time! You don't ever have to be on camera. You have to <a href="https://www.forthealthcare.com/class/fort-healthcare-digital-class-series/">register</a>, but there's no cost. </div><div><br /></div><div>****************</div><div>The sweaty run outside in February is my workout moment of February. What was yours?</div></div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-12100463992408323132024-03-04T05:00:00.001-06:002024-03-04T05:00:00.143-06:00Week Five: My Brilliant Friend CBBC, Adolescence Chapters 46-62<p><b>Past discussion:</b></p><div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/week-1-my-brilliant-friend-cbbc.html">Week One</a>, Prologue & Childhood</div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/week-two-my-brilliant-friend-cbbc.html">Week Two</a>, Adolescence Chapters 1 - 16</div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/week-three-my-brilliant-friend-cbbc.html">Week Three</a>, Adolescence Chapters 17-30</div></div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/week-four-my-brilliant-friend-cbbc.html">Week Four</a>, Adolescence Chapters 31-45</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn_mDiCPlQwKQmqRS1vKvED3p6SIR_IWTj0UEy3yFwsb7Do3OshFUGw7kJ-H20OokRH_ZqKYfEltKE6LPyGct0Ig-Io79oet9g4e4AN6Zh8WBXgutfmPoS2hywRMi0li-WK5h5ZA33NoKfcq-C0M_rmgQcMmYcctzGevS3Y8EHux8Dtvf9ouEsfw/s500/CBBC%20%233.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn_mDiCPlQwKQmqRS1vKvED3p6SIR_IWTj0UEy3yFwsb7Do3OshFUGw7kJ-H20OokRH_ZqKYfEltKE6LPyGct0Ig-Io79oet9g4e4AN6Zh8WBXgutfmPoS2hywRMi0li-WK5h5ZA33NoKfcq-C0M_rmgQcMmYcctzGevS3Y8EHux8Dtvf9ouEsfw/w640-h640/CBBC%20%233.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b> ********************</b></div><div><b>What happened in these chapters?</b></div><div>Lila sets a wedding date (March 12! - crazy timing!) and gets married. Meanwhile, Lenù has found herself in a relationship with Antonio. In the final scene, Marcello Solara walks into the wedding wearing the handmade shoes Antonio had bought from the Cerullos. </div><div><br /></div><div><b> ********************</b></div><div><b>Lines of note:</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div>"I meant only that you are good at making yourself liked. The difference between you and me, always, has been that people are afraid of me and not of you." (page 294)</div><div><br /></div><div>I thought this was a fascinating line because it doesn't really strike me that Lenù is particularly savvy about other people's emotions. A retelling of this book from Lila's perspective would be so interesting. </div><div><br /></div><div>Lila told me that, on seeing the shoes she had designed years earlier made real, she had felt a very violent emotion, as if a fairy had appeared and fulfilled a wish. The shoes really were as she had imagined them at the time. (page 304)</div><div><br /></div><div>This was striking because there's not much whimsy in this book. A fairy! </div><div><br /></div><div>Next to her was the wedding dress, which looked like the body of a dead woman..." (page 312)</div><div><br /></div><div>Even I caught this metaphor about Lila's wedding day.</div><div><br /></div><div>With them I couldn't use any of what I learned every day, I had to suppress myself, in some way diminish myself. (page 319-320) </div><div><br /></div><div>Interesting. I certainly felt this way at times when I would go home. I have a particular family member who refers to me as the "one with the stick up her ass" because I do not laugh at their crude, mean, and often times appalling inappropriate jokes. I sometimes feel like I try to melt into the shadows at family events so I don't have to explain myself.</div><div><br /></div><div><b> ********************</b></div><div><b>Hat mentions (<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/06/81-hat-in-books.html">why hats?</a>):</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div>It was no longer a matter of dresses or <b>hats</b> or scarves or jewelry. (page 291)</div><div><br /></div><div>In the houses of the neighborhood the mothers, the grandmothers had been working for months to make dresses, to get <b>hats</b> and purses, to shop for a wedding present, I don't know, a set of glasses, of plates, of silverware. (page 303)</div><div><br /></div><div>Only now, as I write, do I realize that Fernando at that time couldn't have been more than forty-five, Nunzia was certainly a few years younger and together, that morning, he, in a white shirt and dark suit, with his Randolph Scott face, and she, all in blue, with a blue <b>hat</b> and blue veil, made an impressive sight. (page 314)</div><div><br /></div><div>In case you didn't know (and I certainly didn't), Randolph Scott was an American film actor who was in more than 100 films, most of them westerns. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9hba3VeYF4owtm6etqwK1jgX7wgrkHJoYax9pr3hNbw2OcL6zUi-IJmlUHmqCJphq7DHelccPTMM4YNLj29puk783N290miUTNcQDFFNd2heh12j_ths6FMjFIbFyFNvDvtXQcRUrwHBe9VPrwPMiUO1CW2UAXqX-23ymagGO0WNYRtIlhmyezw/s450/scott.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="348" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9hba3VeYF4owtm6etqwK1jgX7wgrkHJoYax9pr3hNbw2OcL6zUi-IJmlUHmqCJphq7DHelccPTMM4YNLj29puk783N290miUTNcQDFFNd2heh12j_ths6FMjFIbFyFNvDvtXQcRUrwHBe9VPrwPMiUO1CW2UAXqX-23ymagGO0WNYRtIlhmyezw/w494-h640/scott.jpg" width="494" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><b> ********************</b></div><div><b>Last week's homework:</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div>I got really excited when the title showed up in the text.</div><div>"Not for you; you're <b>my brilliant friend</b>, you have to be the best of all, boys and girls." (page 312)</div><div><br /></div><div>It's a bit interesting because I think that for most people they would think that the "my brilliant friend" in the title was Lila, not Lenù. </div><div><br /></div><div><b> ********************</b></div><div><b>Thing I looked up:</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/254308">Oblomov</a></i> - A 1859 novel written by Ivan Goncharov as a satire of the Russian intelligentsia. </div><div><br /></div><div><b> ********************</b></div><div><b>Questions to ponder:</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div>1) What does the last scene mean? Is it just as simple as the Solaras as now the new moneylenders/loan sharks in the neighborhood and now Stefano is indebted to them, so, by proxy, is Lila? Is it just foreshadowing of their marriage because Stefano promised that Marcello wouldn't be at the wedding? Or is there deeper meaning here?</div><div><br /></div><div>2) Did you find this ending satisfying? It's the first of four books, so there's more to the story of these two young women, but do you think this book stands on its own? (I don't usually put my own opinion here, but I feel like the prologue promises us a mystery story and then doesn't deliver.)</div><div><br /></div><div>3) There's still so much competition here between these girls, but it feels like Lila really softens by asking Lenù to help her with the wedding planning because Lenù is so good at handling people, by noting that Lenù is her "brilliant friend," and by acknowledging that Lenù's performance at school is something she is proud of her for. What is the reason for this turnaround, do you think? </div><div><br /></div><div><b> ********************</b></div><div><b>Next week's homework:</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div>What do you want to talk about in the wrap-up next week? Are there questions you want me to ask? Are there themes you think I've ignored? </div><div><br /></div><div><b> ********************</b></div><div><b>Upcoming CBBC schedule:</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Week Six</b><br />Monday, March 11<br />Wrap up!</div><div><b><br /></b></div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-22155709211413283752024-03-03T05:00:00.001-06:002024-03-03T10:59:30.374-06:00February 2024 Books<p>This was a pretty good month of reading for me with some great non-fiction additions to my list.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqTcefKynLT08u0SlyQPH-x299nkHZaUpPkOzw94fLvOQ2Ku7wd3gXQCWp9gMClVOZgLXdVaYkHjGksHq1Hw84Tw9n_ouZTO7TL6ZBqKSt514leDmR2ykbRm_meMuPHNbLw9da15JmGRdHDR0J-vtFF1MdLxKMf9i3ZkHaXLEPg0CwtJP3ZQ_XlQ/s976/feb%20nonfiction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="976" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqTcefKynLT08u0SlyQPH-x299nkHZaUpPkOzw94fLvOQ2Ku7wd3gXQCWp9gMClVOZgLXdVaYkHjGksHq1Hw84Tw9n_ouZTO7TL6ZBqKSt514leDmR2ykbRm_meMuPHNbLw9da15JmGRdHDR0J-vtFF1MdLxKMf9i3ZkHaXLEPg0CwtJP3ZQ_XlQ/w640-h324/feb%20nonfiction.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>2/2: <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/business-or-pleasure-by-rachel-lynn.html">Business or Pleasure</a></i> by Rachel Lynn Solomon (library ebook, 2023) - Spicy romance novel with great communication about sex. 4/5 stars</p><p>2/6: <i>Eye Spy</i> (Valedmar: Family of Spies #2) by Mercedes Lackey (library, 2019) - Solid entry in the Valdemar world, although I worry that Mag and Amily are just developing a habit of sending their children into danger to figure out who they are. 3.5/5 stars</p><p>2/14: <i>6<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/60-songs-that-explain-90s-by-rob.html">0 Songs That Explain the '90s</a></i> by Rob Harvilla (library, 2023) - Harvilla is hilarious. 4/5 stars</p><p>2/15: <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/the-feather-thief-by-kirk-wallace.html">The Feather Thief </a></i>by Kirk Wallace Johnson (library audiobook narrated by MacLeod Andrews, 2018) - Started slow, but by the end I was on the edge of my seat. 4/5 stars</p><p>2/16: <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/none-of-this-is-true-by-lisa-jewell.html">None of This Is True</a></i> by Lisa Jewell (library ebook, 2023) - I really enjoyed this thriller. 4.5/5 stars</p><p>2/17: <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/duology-martha-ballard-was-amazing.html">A Midwife's Tale</a></i> by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich (library, 1990) - Brilliant historical detective work about an absolute kickass lady, a midwife named Martha Ballard who lived in the late 1700-early 1800s.. 5/5 stars</p><p>2/19: <i><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/02/duology-martha-ballard-was-amazing.html">The Frozen River</a></i> by Ariel Lawhon (library, 2023) - Lovely historical fiction loosely based on a couple of Martha Ballard's diary entries. It was quite far away from the reality, but I liked how it proposed some potential answers to lingering questions in Martha's diary. It was wonderful to read it after the Ulrich book. 4.5/5 stars</p><p>2/23: <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19547856-simon-vs-the-homo-sapiens-agenda?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=bRTaMTVRvX&rank=1">Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda</a></i> by Becky Albertalli (library ebook, 2015) - When will I ever learn? Look, YA is just not my jam. It's fine and I'm glad it's out there for people who might find it helpful in their young lives. 3/5 stars</p><p>2/25: <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53487148-a-thousand-ships">A Thousand Ships</a></i> by Natalie Haynes (library, 2019) - Book club book. Retelling of the Trojan War from the perspective of women. I liked how snarky Penelope was in her letters to Odysseus, but overall this felt like homework. 3.5/5 stars</p><p>2/28: <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/62703226">The Only One Lef</a>t </i>by Riley Sager (library ebook, 2023) - I think I might be an easy mark when it comes to thrillers. I literally did not figure out any of the mystery/twists here. I loved the setting, the Gothic-ish mood, and how captivating the plot was. Don't trust me with thrillers, though - I might be an easy grader. 4.5/5 stars</p><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Total: </b>10 books<br /><b>Average star rating:</b> 4.05/5 stars</div><p>*****************</p><p><b>Did Not Finish:</b></p><p><i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/2731276">The Story of Edgar Sawtelle</a></i> by David Wroblewski - Such a good, heartbreaking book. I just could not take it mentally. A boy and his dog(s). This is on me, not the author.</p><p><i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34129245-themystery-doc?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_13">theMystery.doc</a></i> by Matthew McIntosh - I didn't really give this one a fair shot. I read about ten pages and just couldn't deal with a) how huge the physical book was and b) how annoying I was finding the voice. Returned it to the library with no guilt. </p><p>*****************</p><p>What was the best book you read in February?</p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-56564271816519333652024-03-01T05:00:00.010-06:002024-03-19T16:19:38.603-05:0017.1 Hat - Blogging Through the Years<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvm9bxWqPWD5PEHCJZMtsfZXvDf97afJuzMkEuWbbKspvJ3ZC0S5FTuwlSya-2FUpd1fFM-0VLEKDh0ShcXQ07gxX1hkPdB2XBQXAhxeqddj2FeDxwzBxuu6DJojuAfGYUWr1_N7uzUch4FJwfcIScY9GN_b9Apnocx1r-xiwWsd8NNADFcuhvrw/s4032/20240201_210444.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvm9bxWqPWD5PEHCJZMtsfZXvDf97afJuzMkEuWbbKspvJ3ZC0S5FTuwlSya-2FUpd1fFM-0VLEKDh0ShcXQ07gxX1hkPdB2XBQXAhxeqddj2FeDxwzBxuu6DJojuAfGYUWr1_N7uzUch4FJwfcIScY9GN_b9Apnocx1r-xiwWsd8NNADFcuhvrw/w640-h480/20240201_210444.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;">You may or may not remember that one of my "<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/01/2024-goal-setting.html">fun goals</a>" for the first quarter was to photograph the sculptures of cows around our town. I have literally only managed to photograph one, but maybe I'll somehow manage to get done in March. Anyway, this is one of the photos of the cows! This is the Guernsey, if you were curious.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;">A lot of the sculptures in our town get scarves and hats added to them during the winter. I've heard that it's so if someone needs warm outerwear, they can take it off the sculptures, but I don't know if that's true. I think it's just adorable. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;">********************</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://travelspot06.blogspot.com/2024/02/a-lifetime-of-blogging.html">Kyria</a> recently wrote a post (and then <a href="https://stephanywrites.com/blogging-questions-answers/">Stephany</a> did it, too!) about her history with blogging and I thought it was fascinating and absolutely stole all these questions from her.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /><b>When did you start blogging and why? <br /></b>I was super lonely when I was in graduate school, so I started a blog as a way of venting about my life and just getting into the habit of writing non-academic nonsense for a change. I started blogging in September 2004, so I'm coming up on my 20th anniversary.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /><b>What was your first blog post about? </b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;">It was about <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2004/09/ragweed-count.html">allergies</a>? Oh, boy. Riveting post, I'm sure.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /><b>What is your most used label and why? <br /></b><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/search/label/books">Books</a>. No matter what else is going on in my life, I write about books. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /><b>What is your most viewed post? And why do you think this is the case?<br /></b>A <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2020/08/the-duke-and-i-with-second-epilogue-by.html">book review</a> about a popular Julia Quinn historical romance novel. I think it's because I am critical of the book that is quite popular? It's so close to being a good book, but sort of glorifies marital rape and I'm not on board for that. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /><b>Do you answer comments on your blog? If so, what method do you use (email, post on blog)? <br /></b>I used to not answer comments on my blog because I assumed no one would ever come to blog twice. In the last year or two I have been answering the comments in my comments because I do sometimes go back and see how my favorite bloggers respond to my comments. I don't kid myself that I'm anyone's favorite blogger or that they will return to see what I've written, but if someone takes the time to write something to me, I think it's nice to acknowledge that I've read it and appreciate it. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /><b>Do you go back to see if a blog post that you commented on got replies? If so, how do you keep track? </b><br />I sometimes do go back, but mostly I just wait for another post from that blogger to appear in Feedly and then I'll read the responses to the previous post while I'm reading the current post. I'm sure I miss some this way, but it's the only system I have. <br /><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><b>What blog that you still read now have you read the longest?</b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;">I think it's Suzanne's blog, <a href="https://lifeofadoctorswife.wordpress.com/">Life of a Doctor's Wife</a>. I feel like there was a while there when it seemed like the two of us were the only ones still blogging. I remember her writing about how uncertain she was if she wanted to have a baby and now the hypothetical baby is double-digit years old!</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /><b>Do you post on other forms of social media regularly? If so, where?</b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;">A lot of photos that end up on the blog were originally photos I took for Instagram. You can find a link to my Instagram on my sidebar. Other than that...I have a Facebook account, but don't really post much there. I'm FB friends with my boss, so I'm cautious over there!</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;">I do not link my blog to any of my social media. A lot of people in real life have no idea I blog or, if they do know, they don't know what it is or how to find it.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /><b>If you talk about people in your real life, do you use their real names? </b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;">Nope. Except for my friend Tabetha who I have, oddly, decided doesn't get a pseudonym. I've known Tabs since SECOND GRADE. We were SEVEN. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /><b>If you could get paid to blog no matter what you are writing about, what would your focus/theme be? </b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;">Books. Books. Books. All the books. With occasional mentions of my pets.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 14.7px;">********************</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #343a50; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 14.7px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 14.7px;">What's the blog you've read the longest? </span></div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com44tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-87173735144544417902024-02-29T05:00:00.004-06:002024-02-29T09:21:15.718-06:00Duology: Martha Ballard Was Amazing<p>In college, I read <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15594.A_Midwife_s_Tale?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_14">A Midwife's Tale: The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on Her Diary, 1785-1812</a></i> by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich for a class on Women in American History. Martha Ballard was a midwife in rural Maine just as the new country of the United States was being formed. I was riveted by this book when I read it in the late 1990s and thought it was not only a genius work from Martha Ballard to write about her paid work, domestic life, and the details of what it was like in a small town at the turn of the nineteenth century, but also a genius work on behalf of Ulrich to dig into those details and create a narrative of what women's lives were like during a time when we don't have a lot of access to primary documents on that subject. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRZ_vUnKbr901lXbFGnjEeZwTK0Y7rR3R8QvmPB0otBM67j4lSWzkoRdns8gAErjmabrpVTDdNbOisyZn4eegCpMHcqIAZqO4_PDLcQzM0Ki4RgNK-uL0MfjZBnS3uDmdM3NvCaaY9tNWFjNneQzxXDY-4JByLb8-vPFJ0gx-h-wCkVgPto_AFcQ/s475/midwife's%20tale.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="306" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRZ_vUnKbr901lXbFGnjEeZwTK0Y7rR3R8QvmPB0otBM67j4lSWzkoRdns8gAErjmabrpVTDdNbOisyZn4eegCpMHcqIAZqO4_PDLcQzM0Ki4RgNK-uL0MfjZBnS3uDmdM3NvCaaY9tNWFjNneQzxXDY-4JByLb8-vPFJ0gx-h-wCkVgPto_AFcQ/w412-h640/midwife's%20tale.jpg" width="412" /></a></div><br /><p>So I took it out of the library as a re-read and I was once again impressed with both Ballard and Ulrich and wonder why I don't own this book. </p><p>To introduce to the marvel that is Martha Ballard (AKA pioneering lady of amazing strength), I'm going to just quote a paragraph from page 4.</p><p>The year Old Lady Cony had her stroke, Martha Ballard crossed the river in a canoe on December 2, pushing through ice in several places. On December 20 of another year, summoned by a woman in labor, she walked across, almost reaching shore before breaking through to her waist at Sewall's Eddy. She dragged herself out, mounted a neighbor's horse, and rode dripping to the delivery. Necessity and a fickle river cultivated a kind of bravado among Hallowell folks. "People Crost the river on a Cake of ice which swong round from the Eddy East side & stopt at the point below Mr Westons," Martha wrote on December 15 of one year. On April 1 of another she reported walking across on the ice after breakfast, adding drily in the margin of the day's entry, "the river opened at 4 hour pm"</p><p>I mean, this paragraph was meant to illustrate how the river's freezing and thawing was unpredictable and just how long winter was, rendering their small town quite isolated, but I read it as admiring the fortitude of Martha Ballard. If I fell into a frozen river, you best believe I wouldn't be delivering a baby while still soaking wet!</p><p>Also, let's just check the reality of knowing anything about Martha Ballard at all. </p><p>Without the diary, her biography would be little more than a succession of dates. Her birth in 1735. Her marriage to Ephraim Ballard in 1754. The births of their nine children in 1756, 1758, 1761, 1765, 1767, 1769, 1772, and 1779, and the deaths of three of them in 1769. Her own death in 1812. <i>The American Advocate</i> for June 9, 1812, summed up her life in one sentence: "Died in Augusta, Mrs. Martha, consort of Mr. Ephraim Ballard, aged 77 years." Without the diary we would know nothing of her life after the last of her children was born, nothing of the 816 deliveries she performed between 1785 and 1812. We would not even be certain she had been a midwife. (page 5) </p><p>Not all women (or men, for that matter) were literate at this time and not everyone took the time to write down daily activities. This diary is a true marvel. Martha Ballard used the diary as a daybook of sorts. She wrote down the weather, who her visitors were, where she went, and she also recorded debts contracted and her payments. She rarely wrote about her feelings - it was really just a list of facts - but sometimes there would be interjections to let you know that some events impacted her more than others. </p><p>Ulrich's ability to take these basic facts and create a fascinating, rich narrative is also unparalleled. This book won the Pulitzer Prize in 1991 and her ability to weave in other primary and secondary sources in context with the diary itself is definitely the reason why. The research and synthesis of information from so many sources is intimidating to this social scientist. </p><p>5/5 stars</p><p><b>Lines of note:</b></p><p>(Dairy entry) I am at Mrs Howards watching with her son. Went out about day, discovered our saw mill in flames. The men at the fort went over. Found it consumd together with some plank & Bords. I tarried till Evening. Left James Exceeding Dangerously ill. My daughter Hannah is 18 years old this day. Mrs Williams here when I came home. Hannah Cool gott Mrs Norths web out at the Loome. Mr Ballard complains of a soar through this night. He has been to take Mr gardners hors home. (page 36-37)</p><p>See what I mean about just the facts? The mill burning down gets just as much attention here as does Mrs. Williams visiting!</p><p>"Thee Matrimonial writes were <i>cellibrated</i> between Mr Moses Pollard off this Town and my daughter Hannah." Despite the verb there is little evidence of celebration in Martha's scanty description. Here was no gathering of far-flung (or even immediate) family and friends. Cyrus wasn't there, though it was a Sunday, his usual day at hoe, nor did Lucy and Ezra Towne ride down from Winslow. Except for Jonathan and his family, there seem to have been no other guests, not even the groom's parents, who were, after all, good friends of the Ballards. If anyone baked pies or cakes, Martha Ballard didn't say so, nor did the roast turkey appear until Tuesday, two days <i>after</i> the wedding. There is no more sign of special festivity in the entry for November 18: "Mr Pollard & Pitt dind here. Thee latter was joind in the Bands off wedlock with Parthenia Barton." In Martha's description, the wedding appears almost as an afterthought to the0 young men's presence at dinner. (page 140)</p><p>This diary tells us so much about marriage, sex, and love in this time period. Weddings weren't the big thing - it was when couples went "off to housekeeping" that the wedding started in earnest. While Martha herself went off to housekeeping with her husband the same day, that was unusual. Most couples waited weeks to months after the ceremony to move in together. How did we get from this type of lowkey celebration to the crazy weddings we see today?!</p><p><b>Things I looked up:</b></p><p>decoction (page 50) - the liquor resulting from concentrating the essence of a substance by heating or boiling, especially a medicinal preparation made from a plant</p><p>clister (page 50) - enema</p><p>cataplasm (page 50) - (archaic) term for poultice</p><p>jacquardian (page 89) - a Jacquard attachment for a loom allows for more complex patterns to be made</p><p><b>Hat mentions (<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/06/81-hat-in-books.html">why hats?</a>):</b></p><p>One explains that during the pre-Revolutionary boycotts, when Stephen Barton was on the committee to see that no tea was bought in the town, he "was wont to put on his <b>hat</b> and go without while his sympathetic wife and her sister, Martha Moore Ballard, made a cup of tea in the cellar for some sick mother in the neighborhood whose sufferings patriotism and loyalty failed to heal." (page 11)</p><p>You GUYS. The Bartons were <i>Loyalists</i>. </p><p>On February 22, 1800, he helped organized a parade to commemorate the death of his former commander, General Washington. At the head, following a military escort, were "16 Misses, clad in white, with black <b>hats</b> & cloaks, & white scarfs," representatives of the then sixteen states in the Union. (page 32)</p><p>I love this because in Martha's entry for that day, she talks about her patients and who is sick and barely makes notice of this big parade. </p><p>(Diary entry) They Came up on foot and Jonathan Came here without his <b>hat</b>, took him from his supper, push him out a dors, Drove him home to his house, damning and pushing him down and struck him. (page 263)</p><p>Jonathan is her son. There isn't much violence on the pages of Martha's diary, but what is there is often at the hands of her hot-tempered son. </p><p>********************</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlk5IBuAzDnCWp_gLXRmR136oqHIcKYmEYezPo00OLCuMHTODMD0pBkNNQVP1uOw_l1iD0uySPDNd6ek6mDY01p8hMczW6otATBI1wB45U3TdRk4WOeOAxD43b-3Q2MBjKL1qWVg1FoYa-mVokk70_3HCFY1pn0JNVGz0HftFeXB6IFrSNIx2Meg/s480/112975658.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlk5IBuAzDnCWp_gLXRmR136oqHIcKYmEYezPo00OLCuMHTODMD0pBkNNQVP1uOw_l1iD0uySPDNd6ek6mDY01p8hMczW6otATBI1wB45U3TdRk4WOeOAxD43b-3Q2MBjKL1qWVg1FoYa-mVokk70_3HCFY1pn0JNVGz0HftFeXB6IFrSNIx2Meg/w422-h640/112975658.jpg" width="422" /></a></div><br /><p>So then I followed that book up with <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/112975658">The Frozen River</a></i> by Ariel Lawhon, which is a fiction book based on Martha Ballard's life. In one of Martha's diary entries, she mentioned how a woman accused men of raping her, but, the diary being what it was, there was no real resolution to that storyline. Lawhon took it upon herself to weave out a potential narrative over the course of one long winter in Maine. </p><p>This Martha Ballard is very different from the original diarist. She's more assertive, more feminist, and has a horse who many men would be afraid to ride. But she's also not that different. She's hardworking, modest, and a true pillar of the community. I was captivated by this story and obsessed with finding parallels between entries from the original diary and how Lawhon used them in her retelling. Some of the best historical fiction I've read in quite some time. 4.5/5 stars</p><p><b>Lines of note:</b></p><p>Some men think in a straight line, like an arrow off the string. They go to logic, to the easy conclusion, and avoid the waterways of the mind. But not Ephraim. His head is all rivers and streams, and with a mind like that a thought could run anywhere. (page 54-55)</p><p>I think my head is more like a series of rapids and waterfalls. iykyk</p><p>Every midwife I have ever known has cautioned that an abundance of male births for multiple years in a row means looming war. One of them - old, bitter, and widowed - had buried every child of her own and, in the calcification of her grief, would refer to such boys as "the cannon fire of kings." I have never delivered a boy - either from my body or with my hands - and not thought of those words. Of my own nine children, six were girls, and I have always taken that as a good omen. It makes me hopeful that the wars of this country are behind us. (page 161)</p><p>Oof. Well, Martha, I hope it reassure you that your children probably didn't see much of war (although I suppose some were potentially alive during the Civil War).</p><p>It is the aspen that I like best, however, not just for their pale, speckled bark, and astonishing show of gold each fall, but because every aspen in this great expanse of forest is connected by a single root system. They give life, one to another, and work to replace what the loggers take. There is much that men could learn from nature if we would only listen. (page 168)</p><p>Did scientists know about the root system of aspens then? </p><p>Though we have been neighbors for many years, Lidia and I have never been close. Certainly not <i>friends</i>. We have always been cordial, however, each respecting the other's station. What bothers me most about the woman - apart from her unyielding loyalty to a man I despise - is that Lidia North is a weak woman. Timid. Milquetoast. She has no metal in her spine, no opinions of her own. I need my friends to be <i>interesting</i>. To have vim and vigor. (page 250)</p><p>Yes. My friends need to be <i>interesting</i>. </p><p>I follow him to a table at the back and sink onto the bench with a groan. This a new thing I've discovered about myself in recent years. The <i>noises</i>. Stand and groan. Sit and grunt. Some days it seems that I can hardly take a step without some part of my body creaking or cracking and this - even more than the grey hairs and the crow's-feet at my eyes - makes me feel as through I am racing down the final stretch of middle age. (page 267)</p><p>Honestly, I can't sit down these days without a huge sigh. This passage spoke to me. Don't even talk to me about getting out of the car. </p><p>I cannot say why it is so important that I make this daily record. Perhaps because I have been doing so for years on end? Or maybe - if I am being honest - it is because these markings of ink and paper will one day be the only proof that I have existed in this world. That I lived and breathed. That I loved a man and the many children he gave me. It is not that I want to be remembered, per se. I have done nothing remarkable. Not by the standards of history, at least. But I am here. And these words are the mark I will leave behind. So yet, it matters that I continue this ritual. </p><p>As someone who keeps a blog and a pen-and-paper journal, I think about this a lot. Why do I write this down? So I'm not forgotten? Or is it a compulsion? It's an interesting question to ask any journal keeper, I think.</p><p><b>What I looked up:</b></p><p><a href="https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/elizabeth-freeman">Mum Bett</a> case (page 167) - Elizabeth Freeman, born as "Mum Bett," was the first African American woman to successfully file a lawsuit for freedom in the state of Massachusetts in 1781. (There's a <i>Let's Go To Court</i> <a href="https://podcastaddict.com/let-s-go-to-court/episode/114593277">episode</a> about this case, if anyone listens to that pod.) You guys, I feel so much guilt that my knowledge of black history is so terrible. </p><p>hippen (page 254) - a baby's diaper - I've never heard this term, have you?</p><p><b>Hat mentions (<a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/06/81-hat-in-books.html">why hats?</a>):</b></p><p>Lots of hats in this book (11), but page 113 had three all by itself.</p><p>"I thank you for the help," he says, replacing his <b>hat</b>. He tips it, adds "Mistress," then looks over my shoulder. Again, he offers that charming smile and tips his <b>hat</b> a second time. "Miss."</p><p>....</p><p>Another tip of the <b>hat</b>. (This same character proceeds to tip his hat several more times in the book. It's his character quirk.)</p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-25816718457843625392024-02-28T05:00:00.002-06:002024-02-28T05:00:00.127-06:00Snapshot of My Day, Edition #13, 2/26/2024<p>I got the idea for this type of "snapshot" post from <a href="https://stephanywrites.com/">Stephany Writes</a> who got it from <a href="https://www.toloveandtolearn.com/">To Love and To Learn</a>. I'm a straight-up copycat of the format.</p><p>********************</p><div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2021/11/a-snapshot-of-my-day-edition-1.html">Edition #1</a> 11/17/2021<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2021/12/a-snapshot-of-my-day-edition-2-12222021.html">Edition #2</a> 12/22/2021<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2022/01/a-snapshot-of-my-day-edition-3-1262022.html">Edition #3</a> 1/26/2022<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2022/03/snapshot-of-my-day-edition-4-392022.html">Edition #4</a> 3/9/2022<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2022/04/a-snapshot-of-my-day-edition-5-4252022.html">Edition #5</a> 4/25/2022<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2022/06/snapshot-of-my-day-edition-6-6232022.html">Edition #6</a> 6/23/2022<br /><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2022/08/a-snapshot-of-my-day-edition-7-8302022.html">Edition #7</a> 8/30/2022</div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/02/426-moment-snapshot-of-my-day-edition-8.html">Edition #8</a> 2/25/2023</div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/03/526-moment-snapshot-of-my-day-edition-9.html">Edition #9</a> 3/25/2023</div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/04/626-moment-snapshot-of-day-edition-10.html">Edition #10</a> 4/25/2023</div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/07/926-moment-snapshot-of-day-edition-11.html">Edition #11</a> 7/25/2023</div></div><div><a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2023/10/1226-moment-snapshot-of-my-day-edition.html">Edition #12</a> 10/25/2023</div><div><br /></div><div>********************</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicsJ3Mocok6oGxm1xRI383kX_TGH1SjOlllGyeHuJapko2g6sc_m2kB9oGqW-z8HkI9PPBbXBiRtTkvFIKP8xMTqgERVKYIO-WKYyy3F15-Ses8PuOYDz9WmbhxnfiESlR99vLNsO1YbCAp8aOEdnl-TzslArXpsEVNFGck3u7wGdDvquOePso_w/s4032/20240218_131604.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicsJ3Mocok6oGxm1xRI383kX_TGH1SjOlllGyeHuJapko2g6sc_m2kB9oGqW-z8HkI9PPBbXBiRtTkvFIKP8xMTqgERVKYIO-WKYyy3F15-Ses8PuOYDz9WmbhxnfiESlR99vLNsO1YbCAp8aOEdnl-TzslArXpsEVNFGck3u7wGdDvquOePso_w/w640-h480/20240218_131604.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Someone once asked how fuzzy Zelda's paws are. Check out those front paws. She slides all over our wood floors.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div><b>Time I woke up:</b> 5:30am when the alarm went off.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>First thing I did upon waking:</b> Read some of my book while bathing in the glow of my SAD lamp. I'm currently reading <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/62703226">The Only One Left</a></i> by Riley Sager. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj68n-GTn5WnUi3w_qPZ6T_QjrI8inU-CdubpwIKglKDb9Tzvg4SMsvHxX-XX4ajndfNzn-eUybt7xC6vqeC7xL95GIyfiYxCH5f_gYhKFV1dIBqcojAoEkxfxembfY1mH2CshJaUiFLP5GAVPaUCAK0qGlIw1yO75FWKzPoHwdt5tzlLmZXtxuMw/s4032/20240226_053315.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj68n-GTn5WnUi3w_qPZ6T_QjrI8inU-CdubpwIKglKDb9Tzvg4SMsvHxX-XX4ajndfNzn-eUybt7xC6vqeC7xL95GIyfiYxCH5f_gYhKFV1dIBqcojAoEkxfxembfY1mH2CshJaUiFLP5GAVPaUCAK0qGlIw1yO75FWKzPoHwdt5tzlLmZXtxuMw/w480-h640/20240226_053315.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><b>Today's weather:</b> Warm and sunny. Look, I couldn't ask for better for a Wisconsin February. I actually went for a walk in the middle of the afternoon while at work and I didn't even need a coat.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSkv_GdfMbgapvGbs26R8B21Kk3IqSewYCxUTriNfQn5LdRV0IObh6K5KKhNZp9E1PMLWP-b4OkmiCXik54W-eZ6NZCcZea7nH0fjD24H3Aw7jNLnGiGxD6XczlTEtxMYxgL9abZgBmPOsft0aIkswDTDBLQ76wcnHuV6v7F_eZbC3drZ5BZW1fw/s4032/20240226_150145.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSkv_GdfMbgapvGbs26R8B21Kk3IqSewYCxUTriNfQn5LdRV0IObh6K5KKhNZp9E1PMLWP-b4OkmiCXik54W-eZ6NZCcZea7nH0fjD24H3Aw7jNLnGiGxD6XczlTEtxMYxgL9abZgBmPOsft0aIkswDTDBLQ76wcnHuV6v7F_eZbC3drZ5BZW1fw/w640-h480/20240226_150145.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There was SNOW on Friday. You can still see the salt on the sidewalk. But today I was walking around without a coat like it was June or something.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><b>An out-of-the-ordinary thing that happened today:</b> I cannot stress to you how weird and unusual this weather is. I took Hannah for extra long walks today and tried to be outside as much as possible because while the high was in the high 50s today, on Wednesday, the high is forecasted to be barely above freezing with lows in the teens (brrrr).</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Last thing I read (not on the internet):</b> I read a tiny bit of <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44024451-the-less-people-know-about-us">The Less People Know About Us</a></i> before dinner.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Last thing I read (on the internet): </b>An article on <a href="https://www.npr.org/2024/02/24/1230188789/portugal-drug-overdose-opioid-treatment">NPR</a> about how Portugal deals with opioid addiction with decriminalization and treating addiction as the health crisis it is. Unfortunately, there are no good takeaways from the article about why it works in places like Portugal, but not in places in the States where similar programs have been tried. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Last text I received:</b> I always tell them about your one letter trick. (From TJC - She asked what advice I'd give to teens taking the ACT. I said that students should answer every question, but if they run out of time it's better to guess all the same letter, i.e., DDDDD, than to alternate letters ABCDE.)</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Last text I sent:</b> Hey, every little bit helps when you're guessing. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnl6el3m9jp5mxdlkpCjUjO3kjklpkdR6bIu_-eISlmqv4R3D-kJH81x6MISFy0-dyw_1RyvB4lKc1_YcCgOMH6xgum8TGwTbPzCzs_uflQxRkwX8Y5m-xwPtnOEWveLgkkSCZgPvbDJbENTd6zYuXwPOzOTiLIxEknUmGj1eTVMUvgqdNV_Emsw/s1300/snipping%201%2022pm.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="771" data-original-width="1300" height="380" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnl6el3m9jp5mxdlkpCjUjO3kjklpkdR6bIu_-eISlmqv4R3D-kJH81x6MISFy0-dyw_1RyvB4lKc1_YcCgOMH6xgum8TGwTbPzCzs_uflQxRkwX8Y5m-xwPtnOEWveLgkkSCZgPvbDJbENTd6zYuXwPOzOTiLIxEknUmGj1eTVMUvgqdNV_Emsw/w640-h380/snipping%201%2022pm.PNG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Screenshot from a meeting I had a work today. </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div><b>Last website I visited:</b> FedEx to see where the nearest drop-off location to my house is. I currently have three packages that need to be sent - one for FedEx, one for UPS, and one for USPS. Why does everything have to be so complicated?</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Last show I watched:</b> We watched an episode of <i>Taskmaster</i> (series 7, episode 3) on Friday night.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Last podcast I listened to:</b> <a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/booksunbound/episodes/110---Raeleens-Birthday-and-a-Rereads-TBR-e1a4skn">Episode #110</a> of <i>Books Unbound</i>. I love two friends chatting about books they love </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Last thing I said:</b> Zelda's food has gone up by $10 since last month. Last month it was $65.31 and this month it's $73.35. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrZQdh4kvCJRUvJSxJBhUWiHR2KFfc8MIziJyOx6nr_mS2iIPNWtn90MziIE_SEGBU1hipF4NIpMheRQit3MPe44FYNSZVv3nooVuoGb33MEew8VF39Snh26XiEvoaP7rUGj8WoX_DtgxD6QBO3Mx-Fc9tTv0e_WefoSDOJeYy3uzN87lZ6AacpQ/s2064/20240226_124414.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2064" data-original-width="2064" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrZQdh4kvCJRUvJSxJBhUWiHR2KFfc8MIziJyOx6nr_mS2iIPNWtn90MziIE_SEGBU1hipF4NIpMheRQit3MPe44FYNSZVv3nooVuoGb33MEew8VF39Snh26XiEvoaP7rUGj8WoX_DtgxD6QBO3Mx-Fc9tTv0e_WefoSDOJeYy3uzN87lZ6AacpQ/w640-h640/20240226_124414.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My afternoon snack of these addictive <a href="https://www.hersheyland.com/products/brookside-dark-chocolate-acai-and-blueberry-candy-7-oz-bag.html">Brookside</a> chocolates.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div><b>Last thing I ate: </b>Popcorn. Ha. I think I eat more popcorn than the average person.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>What I was doing an hour ago:</b> Finishing dinner.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>What I will be doing an hour from now:</b> Hopefully sleeping or at least reading in bed. (NOTE: This didn't happen. I was still in the shower.)</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Current whereabouts of other members of the household:</b> My husband is on the couch watching videos on his phone, the dog is passed out in her bed, the cat is losing her mind with kitty zoomies doing circle laps around the dining room table.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>One thing I crossed off my to-do list today:</b> I fixed my issue with Disqus!! For dumb reasons, I could not figure out how to make Disqus let me comment on blogs, particularly <a href="https://lisasyarns.blogspot.com/">Lisa</a> and <a href="https://www.toloveandtolearn.com/">Torrie</a>'s blogs. But! Now I can! This has literally been on my to-do list for months.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Last thing I bought:</b> $15.13 worth of gas for our older car. I was just going to put $15 in, but I got distracted by a guy walking a black cat on a leash down Main Street. All I could think was that Hannah would lose her shit if she saw a cat on a leash on one of her walks. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinGR1n89jRlbROGlSlpDk2xujxDtbJYjJftlVNhyphenhyphen9j-f50Uv8_69q6AiDv_3EX-iOSjcKL59ZClbX_Q3crogQu5168HHAh9wV7E2xM2r_WUok6QUtMJ5RHmTQ3iojMhzsls1m-2cNZSphWyz1JL7o60wJeIkzgAe3H1NH7ed7HUnlo3jEZt7a3NA/s4032/20240226_170927.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinGR1n89jRlbROGlSlpDk2xujxDtbJYjJftlVNhyphenhyphen9j-f50Uv8_69q6AiDv_3EX-iOSjcKL59ZClbX_Q3crogQu5168HHAh9wV7E2xM2r_WUok6QUtMJ5RHmTQ3iojMhzsls1m-2cNZSphWyz1JL7o60wJeIkzgAe3H1NH7ed7HUnlo3jEZt7a3NA/w480-h640/20240226_170927.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hannah on our after work walk. She was thrilled to have to pose for a photo.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>2/26/2024 8:08pm</div><div><br /></div><div>********************</div><div>What out-of-the-ordinary thing has happened to you recently?</div><div><br /></div>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8347253.post-2916087206664039642024-02-27T05:00:00.010-06:002024-02-27T05:00:00.134-06:00Tell NGS What To Do: Advice Needed for Basic Adulting<p>1) How are we exfoliating our bodies these days? We have very hard water and the buildup on my skin is quite noticeable and a little embarrassing. I rub with a washcloth in every shower, but I still get visible buildup, especially on my chest. Are you using a scrub? Which one? Are you buying one or making one? Are you using a loofah or brush? How do you keep a loofah or brush clean? I have so many questions and wonder yet again why there isn't a manual for adulthood explaining all of this. </p><p>2) I have asked the yoga experts in my life this question already, but I'm putting it out to you in case any of you have suggestions.</p><p>For years I have had a less than ideal rig for carrying my yoga gear to yoga classes. I have a <a href="https://www.duluthpack.com/products/bison-leather-market-tote">Duluth Pack</a> tote I use for the gear and then I carry my mat separately. This is annoying because then I have to remember all the things and I hate it when it's cold or rainy and I have to have my hands out of my pockets. I would prefer all the things just be in one location. I have decided that I am the kind of person who goes to yoga class (years of experience says it's so, right?), so I'm going to treat myself to a yoga bag. </p><p>I have researched bags, of course. I have ordered and returned THREE yoga bags for not meeting my criteria. Here's what I want from my bag: I need it to hold two blocks, a blanket, a strap, and somehow my mat has to be connected to the bag. I'd also enjoy a nice-feeling and nice-looking material, but I am willing to allow for polyester if need be. I'll pay multiple hundreds of dollars if I must.</p><p>Here are the bags I've returned.</p><p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D2BVHHE?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details">Bag #1</a>: The interior was not large enough for two blocks and a blanket.</p><p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09K64MNF5?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1">Bag #2</a>: Almost large enough, but once I crammed in my blocks and blanket, my mat would not fit into the area designated for the mat. Also, the rayon was unpleasant to touch.</p><p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Uhawi-Carrier-Multi-Functional-Durable%EF%BC%88-Carrying/dp/B07FQD576G/ref=sr_1_4?crid=2VM1EQZJ2M4NA&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.PgnGIm2ypHqvPZljufZUjUmCrTuqMhqSh3PgA8qg8uDWkNPVC2_Tbbh3utDMsunKLi9SfvUZST6DbkLF5nk5a14RJlQN-1iaW1MtjeI_hEC7X5lUM0YFYfg10edUtXtHvl9Ng-MU-4KQbiM7neelE0dUqIoqCDZEdIUlp0ZCWBwhu30KXMyk7Lhcl11i-jk1Nup2iGXtxKcJ7z_PepQLIU4au6ms9L2zlG0t_jMp1qC6eFyb_w4uyafHft7ZtMLlgh_JNMm9Tda6vZV8n12Nb1K8Br5PUIddisDXD7jS2pA.CXK009Mjqk-GDRtJxqFmjRNmfmYV1l5BLCIjdLoZYZg&dib_tag=se&keywords=yoga%2Bbags%2Band%2Bcarriers%2Bfits%2Ball%2Byour%2Bstuff&qid=1708439440&s=sporting-goods&sprefix=yoga%2Bbag%2Csporting%2C353&sr=1-4&th=1">Bag #3</a>: Big enough, but very hard to manage while walking. Won't you think of us slope-shouldered ladies, bag designers?</p><p>Okay, hit me with what yoga bag I should get. </p><p>3) I have had some alarming bloodwork done recently. For someone who exercises regularly, eats relatively well, and does all the things doctors tell me to, I am in some dangerous territory. I am contemplating my diet. It has to be the diet. So, tell me, when do you drink a protein shake? Like, where does it fit in your day? Or, to be more specific, when should I fit it in *my* day?</p><div style="text-align: left;">6:30-7am - Eat breakfast<br />8am - 4:30pm - At work where I eat a pre-packed lunch of vegetables, guacamole, pretzels, and nuts. And usually some cheese, but I live in Wisconsin and sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.<br />5:30 - 6:30pm - Workout.<br />6:30 - 7pm - Eat dinner.<br />9:30-10:30pm - Go to bed.</div><p>I rarely eat anything in between meals, but there is a candy bowl in our office and I am not above a mid-afternoon snack-sized Payday (peanuts have protein, right?). </p><p>When would I make a protein shake and eat it? Do I just replace breakfast with it? And then bring some fruit with me to work for a mid-morning snack? What a bummer to not sit down to a relaxing breakfast every morning. Ugh. I need help. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvDelYnqoK4euBbY4M44vDUgzdNmDVAh3D-lOUspZm1Ge3fzm1hjtZ3bPiGgqEh14mxDcEX7N90Byl2JDQ1JN67xjjIVzaCMNsWKb1xLvGRQSbEvH5SOk9u6AKbWaUL6_0Cft0rFUK_cSj8szrYMgof2f9jVirrNstPJXof1wEbxILmblkH9qzjA/s4032/20240221_160327.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvDelYnqoK4euBbY4M44vDUgzdNmDVAh3D-lOUspZm1Ge3fzm1hjtZ3bPiGgqEh14mxDcEX7N90Byl2JDQ1JN67xjjIVzaCMNsWKb1xLvGRQSbEvH5SOk9u6AKbWaUL6_0Cft0rFUK_cSj8szrYMgof2f9jVirrNstPJXof1wEbxILmblkH9qzjA/w480-h640/20240221_160327.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The candy bowl in question.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>4) On the advice of my hairstylist,</p><p>(Her name is Ashley and she is currently on maternity leave and I don't know what to do because this lady's hair needs some assistance, but that's not the question I'm asking here. Mom and baby are fine, although mom needed three surgeries and I expect her mat leave might be longer than she and I had anticipated.)</p><p>I have recently started using some purple shampoo once every two or three weeks. She warned me against using it too often because it can be drying, but like, my hair is an oily mess ten minutes after I blow-dry it, so I'm not super concerned. ANYWAY. Purple shampoo is really purple when it comes out of the bottle. Crazy purple. And the shampoo stains my hands and my nails for up to 48 hours after I wash my hair using this crazy shampoo. How do I get rid of this stain? (I'm going to refrain from asking you how you exfoliate your scalp. I'm scared you might answer that I need one of those scary looking <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MW37YX5/?coliid=I2V046N7R0H3X0&colid=18YMBW0LLVYFC&psc=1&ref_=list_c_wl_lv_ov_lig_dp_it">scrubber things</a>. But if you also end up with residue in your hair, I'd be interested in how you rid yourself of it. Hard water is the worst.)</p><p>5) Update on the <a href="https://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2024/01/kitchen-odds-and-ends.html">last time </a>I asked for advice: We have just given up garlic. Honestly, we have wasted so much money throwing out garlic in the last two months. And we spent upwards of ten minutes at the grocery store last week examining the jars of garlic, but none of them were labelled gluten free. Dr. BB and I had an intense discussion about whether or not we feel like garlic adds anything to our recipes, came to the conclusion that it did not, and we just didn't buy any. </p><p>(Also, I have a memory from LAST YEAR of buying 3 cucumbers for 99 cents and last time we went to the grocery store it was 1 cucumber for $1.19 and I just couldn't do it, friends. I have been buying 3 cucumbers for lunches for years - I get half a cucumber every work day and then on Thursdays I get an entire cucumber - but the cucumber price has jumped the shark. I then discussed The Great Cucumber Price Increase with my co-workers and it turns out they are buying those fancy skinny seedless cucumbers in the plastic wrapping and one of my co-workers admitted to paying $2.99 for an organic cucumber and I almost keeled over. I am obviously too frugal for my officemates.) </p><p>Hit me with exfoliation techniques, yoga bag suggestions, and tell me how to eat. Also, if you want to weigh in on how much cucumbers cost, I wouldn't be mad.</p>NGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04056381269070465424noreply@blogger.com53