(no subject)
Dec. 5th, 2025 10:14 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
greghousesgfHad some butterscotch caramel tea. I think tomorrow I will go over to Lower Haight and have beer at Toronado and barbecue at Memphis Minnie's.
greghousesgf
(no subject)
Dec. 5th, 2025 12:57 pmmajuIt was -10°C/14°F this morning and predicted to stay under freezing point all day, so I'm thinking I will stay inside and walk up and down the stairs for exercise.
I don't want to sound ungrateful, because I really do appreciate my daughter and son in law making their basement available for me to live in, but it can be hard not being in my own space where I'm able to prepare and eat my own choice of food. My daughter and son in law are both good cooks and in general I very much enjoy eating whatever they prepare, but just sometimes I want to eat something that is not in their repertoire. Things are complicated by the fact that this is a gluten-free household by necessity, so I can never have the bread I like (or make my own); other meals being gluten-free is fine but for breakfast I miss the toast I used to make with my own sourdough bread.)
On every previous visit here I've known it was only temporary and sooner or later I would be back in my own environment, but this time I'm adjusting to the idea that it's permanent, or at least much longer term than ever before. (I'm still holding out hope that things will work out for me to either move to a separate apartment or into a granny flat that's been added to this house.)
There are many benefits to being here, of course. I feel safer knowing I'm not alone in the house if something bad happens to me or I fall ill. I am very relieved that I'm no longer responsible for running a house and maintaining a yard. I love seeing my granddaughters all the time and the physical affection they give me.
I know my being here is something of an imposition on the family. I'm living in what used to be the girls' playroom. It's also where my son in law's piano is kept, so he needs to be able to feel comfortable coming down here to play it every day at times when I'm not down here. I try to stay upstairs for long enough at different times during the day for him to get his piano time.
I don't want to sound ungrateful, because I really do appreciate my daughter and son in law making their basement available for me to live in, but it can be hard not being in my own space where I'm able to prepare and eat my own choice of food. My daughter and son in law are both good cooks and in general I very much enjoy eating whatever they prepare, but just sometimes I want to eat something that is not in their repertoire. Things are complicated by the fact that this is a gluten-free household by necessity, so I can never have the bread I like (or make my own); other meals being gluten-free is fine but for breakfast I miss the toast I used to make with my own sourdough bread.)
On every previous visit here I've known it was only temporary and sooner or later I would be back in my own environment, but this time I'm adjusting to the idea that it's permanent, or at least much longer term than ever before. (I'm still holding out hope that things will work out for me to either move to a separate apartment or into a granny flat that's been added to this house.)
There are many benefits to being here, of course. I feel safer knowing I'm not alone in the house if something bad happens to me or I fall ill. I am very relieved that I'm no longer responsible for running a house and maintaining a yard. I love seeing my granddaughters all the time and the physical affection they give me.
I know my being here is something of an imposition on the family. I'm living in what used to be the girls' playroom. It's also where my son in law's piano is kept, so he needs to be able to feel comfortable coming down here to play it every day at times when I'm not down here. I try to stay upstairs for long enough at different times during the day for him to get his piano time.
Just stuff
Dec. 5th, 2025 07:44 amsusandennisBiggie takes 3 pills a day. He has a vet appointment next week. His old vet moved to Iowa. So this is a new-ish one. She saw him last fall when he ate (and then popped) the nose plug but she hasn't weighed in on his pills/food. The last vet gave him one of the pills to discourage him from eating weird shit. The other pill was in lieu of the hyper expensive food she had prescribed the year before for his urinary issues.
I'm thinking we drop the anti anxiety pill and see how that goes. And then also drop the other one and go back to the hyper expensive food. Expensive, yes, but easier over all. He's fine. He acts fine. He eats fine. He poops fine. He pees fine. He drinks plenty of water. He's fine.
Oh and the tofu litter? It's really really fine. I am never going back. It's cleaner with no dust or debris and I also feel like I need less of it to do the job.
This morning, I think I'll go out and get some smaller cash. I never need 20 dollar bills. When I do need cash, it's ones and fives. There is a little Christmas fair this morning to raise money for something. But Martha has a table so I have to go. If I want to buy something, it's much more considerate to have exact change and all I have are 20's. To today is a good excuse to go get some usable money. I set up the Chase account for this very reason but have yet to take advantage. The closest Chase branch is very close.
It's cold and rainy but not nearly cold enough for ice so no big obstacle for going out and the car needs to stretch its tires.
I'm thinking we drop the anti anxiety pill and see how that goes. And then also drop the other one and go back to the hyper expensive food. Expensive, yes, but easier over all. He's fine. He acts fine. He eats fine. He poops fine. He pees fine. He drinks plenty of water. He's fine.
Oh and the tofu litter? It's really really fine. I am never going back. It's cleaner with no dust or debris and I also feel like I need less of it to do the job.
This morning, I think I'll go out and get some smaller cash. I never need 20 dollar bills. When I do need cash, it's ones and fives. There is a little Christmas fair this morning to raise money for something. But Martha has a table so I have to go. If I want to buy something, it's much more considerate to have exact change and all I have are 20's. To today is a good excuse to go get some usable money. I set up the Chase account for this very reason but have yet to take advantage. The closest Chase branch is very close.
It's cold and rainy but not nearly cold enough for ice so no big obstacle for going out and the car needs to stretch its tires.
Westward Circumnavigation, Leg 1 - Taiwan
Dec. 4th, 2025 09:02 pmfauxkloreThe one flight I paid for with actual money (vs. frequent flyer miles) was from Washington Dulles to San Francisco. Because I had gotten compensation for a couple of flight delays over the summer, this cost me next to nothing. The catch was that the flight was at 6:30 in the morning, which meant taking a Lyft to IAD at oh-dark-thirty. As is all too typical when I have early flights like that, going to bed early didn’t really work and I got much too little sleep.
I first flew into SFO in August 1980, when I moved to the Bay Area to go to grad school at Berkeley. The airport was under construction. It has been under construction for the 45 years since. This time it was a particularly long walk to baggage claim and, from there, to the air train. I had decided that staying at the Grand Hyatt was a good use of Hyatt points and this proved to have been a good decision. They charged me $30 for early check-in, but that was a good deal since I’d gotten a $600 room for free. So, instead of going into the city and going to a museum or the like, I took a nap and spent some time reading and doing puzzles. You can avoid the high prices at the hotel restaurant if you realize that there’s a food court outside of security in the international terminal. I did splurge on breakfast in the morning, however.
The flight from SFO to TPE is nearly 14 hours, so it was a good thing that I’d had enough miles to do it in business class. I decided to splurge on a taxi when I arrived instead of trying to figure out the public transportation. That was a smart decision because, as I learned in the morning, Taipei Main Station is a bit of a maze and, while my hotel was a very short walk from the station, finding the entrance would have been challenging on my own. I stayed for three nights at White Space Design Hotel which was okay, but the room was very small and the bathroom was the sort that floods completely when you take a shower.
As for what to see, I had read the relevant sections of both the Fodor’s and Frommer’s guidebooks. I also found Nick Kembel’s Taiwan Obsessed website to be very helpful.
My first sightseeing excursion was to the National Palace Museum. I’d bought a three day pass for the transit system, which was convenient, but not really a great deal. Getting to the museum was easy enough (via metro and bus). The museum itself was completely overwhelming. I’m a big fan of calligraphy and manuscripts, so spent a lot of time looking at their book and scroll collection. Most of the displays had to do with books from the Song dynasty (roughly 1100’s through 1200’s) so I kept making mental jokes about there being a lot of songbooks.
I also looked at other things, e.g. clay and jade and bronze. I particularly liked several of the jade pieces.
I spent several hours at the museum (with a break to have lunch in their cafe) and found it completely overwhelming. I’d have liked to see their textile collection (which is in another building) but, at that point, I didn’t think I could absorb anything else.
I started Sunday morning with the Flower and Jade Markets, which are near Daan Park, which was a pleasant place to walk around. The jade market didn’t really engage me, alas. But the flower market was overwhelming and was one of the highlights of my time in Taipei.
There were several things I was interested in doing, but I decided it was important to take advantage of the weather being clear, as rain was predicted for the rest of my time there. That made it a good afternoon to go to Taipei 101, which had once been the tallest building in the world. There’s a huge food court there, which is a good (albeit crowded) place to get lunch. There’s also an upscale shopping mall. But the real reason to go there is to go up to the observation deck. I chose to go to the 89th floor enclosed area, instead of paying a lot more to go to the outdoor skydeck on the 101st floor. You get views over the whole area, including both the city, with a lot of tall modern building, and the surrounding mountains. By the way, you can also go down to the 88th floor and see the large damper that protects the building from earthquakes.
Overall, the experience is quite similar to the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, which is what is currently the tallest building in the world.
The other site in Taipei that I considered essential was the Chiang-Kai Shek Memorial Hall. Fortunately, that is one of the few things in Taipei that is open on Mondays. It is also free to visit. It was a rainy day, which was annoying, particularly because it meant they weren’t doing the famous changing of the guard. But there was still plenty to see.
Note that you can enter at one of the sides and take the elevator up, instead of climbing all of those stairs. The main thing to see inside is the bronze statue of Chiang Kai-Shek on the 4th floor.
There are also several exhibit halls with various art exhibitions. The parks surrounding the monument are lovely and, had it not been windy and rainy, I could have spent much of the day walking around them. Instead, I took the metro to some outlying areas, where I walked around a couple of malls without finding anything (other than a late lunch) that I wanted to buy.
Eventually, I went back to Taipei Main, walked back to the hotel, and retrieved my bag, before taking the commuter train to the Airport MRT Station in Taiyuan, which was a short walk through the Gloria Outlets to Hotel Cozzi Blu, where I’d spend that night and the next. This was a much fancier (and, hence, pricier) hotel, but the price was still fairly reasonable. The room I got was huge and the bathroom was equipped with a Japanese washlet toilet (as well as a shower that drained in the actual shower enclosure, rather than the middle of the floor.) They also provide free snacks, e.g. a packet of potato chips and a small can of coke.
The main reason for staying there is that it’s right next to XPark, which is the aquarium that had triggered this part of the trip. It was also conveniently close to the airport for my early flight on Wednesday.
Xpark did prove to be worth going to, especially if you like jellyfish. (And, yes, I know you are supposed to call them jellies, but old habits die hard.)
They do have a fairly wide assortment of other things, e.g. fish of all sizes (including sharks and rays, but none of my beloved sea dragons). They put the penguins near their cafe, with a tunnel for them to walk over the cafe, which is pretty cute. They also have an outdoor area (with umbrellas to borrow, if you didn’t have your own), but the weather was pretty unpleasant.
My intention had been to use a couple of hours that afternoon to shop. There was, however, a catch. The typhoon that had done some serious damage to the Phillippines was heading towards Taiwan which was why there was so much heavy rain. The city of Taoyuan had pretty much shut down, so both the Gloria Outlets and the nearby Landmark Plaza Mall were closed. There was allegedly a yarn store a short walk away, but it was closed. I retreated to my hotel room to do puzzles and read instead. I was also concerned about my flight the next day. So it was not exactly the best travel day ever. However, the nearby convenience store was open and provided food for supper. (Convenience stores in most Asian countries are, in general, far superior to any American 7-11 or, even, Wawa.)
In the end, my flight did go out in the morning. It was, however, a little over an hour late. Since I had only a two hour layover at BKK, I was concerned about my connection. You can only imagine my relief when I got off the plane and there was a woman standing there with a sign with my connecting flight info and my name. Yes, Thai Air had sent an escort to get me to the flight to Frankfurt. It was a long walk - and a bit confusing since it was going out from the satellite terminal. I got to the gate about 15 minutes before boarding started and collapsed for the next 11 1/2 hours. I’ll pick up the story in the next post.
I first flew into SFO in August 1980, when I moved to the Bay Area to go to grad school at Berkeley. The airport was under construction. It has been under construction for the 45 years since. This time it was a particularly long walk to baggage claim and, from there, to the air train. I had decided that staying at the Grand Hyatt was a good use of Hyatt points and this proved to have been a good decision. They charged me $30 for early check-in, but that was a good deal since I’d gotten a $600 room for free. So, instead of going into the city and going to a museum or the like, I took a nap and spent some time reading and doing puzzles. You can avoid the high prices at the hotel restaurant if you realize that there’s a food court outside of security in the international terminal. I did splurge on breakfast in the morning, however.
The flight from SFO to TPE is nearly 14 hours, so it was a good thing that I’d had enough miles to do it in business class. I decided to splurge on a taxi when I arrived instead of trying to figure out the public transportation. That was a smart decision because, as I learned in the morning, Taipei Main Station is a bit of a maze and, while my hotel was a very short walk from the station, finding the entrance would have been challenging on my own. I stayed for three nights at White Space Design Hotel which was okay, but the room was very small and the bathroom was the sort that floods completely when you take a shower.
As for what to see, I had read the relevant sections of both the Fodor’s and Frommer’s guidebooks. I also found Nick Kembel’s Taiwan Obsessed website to be very helpful.
My first sightseeing excursion was to the National Palace Museum. I’d bought a three day pass for the transit system, which was convenient, but not really a great deal. Getting to the museum was easy enough (via metro and bus). The museum itself was completely overwhelming. I’m a big fan of calligraphy and manuscripts, so spent a lot of time looking at their book and scroll collection. Most of the displays had to do with books from the Song dynasty (roughly 1100’s through 1200’s) so I kept making mental jokes about there being a lot of songbooks.
I also looked at other things, e.g. clay and jade and bronze. I particularly liked several of the jade pieces.
I spent several hours at the museum (with a break to have lunch in their cafe) and found it completely overwhelming. I’d have liked to see their textile collection (which is in another building) but, at that point, I didn’t think I could absorb anything else.
I started Sunday morning with the Flower and Jade Markets, which are near Daan Park, which was a pleasant place to walk around. The jade market didn’t really engage me, alas. But the flower market was overwhelming and was one of the highlights of my time in Taipei.
There were several things I was interested in doing, but I decided it was important to take advantage of the weather being clear, as rain was predicted for the rest of my time there. That made it a good afternoon to go to Taipei 101, which had once been the tallest building in the world. There’s a huge food court there, which is a good (albeit crowded) place to get lunch. There’s also an upscale shopping mall. But the real reason to go there is to go up to the observation deck. I chose to go to the 89th floor enclosed area, instead of paying a lot more to go to the outdoor skydeck on the 101st floor. You get views over the whole area, including both the city, with a lot of tall modern building, and the surrounding mountains. By the way, you can also go down to the 88th floor and see the large damper that protects the building from earthquakes.
Overall, the experience is quite similar to the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, which is what is currently the tallest building in the world.
The other site in Taipei that I considered essential was the Chiang-Kai Shek Memorial Hall. Fortunately, that is one of the few things in Taipei that is open on Mondays. It is also free to visit. It was a rainy day, which was annoying, particularly because it meant they weren’t doing the famous changing of the guard. But there was still plenty to see.
Note that you can enter at one of the sides and take the elevator up, instead of climbing all of those stairs. The main thing to see inside is the bronze statue of Chiang Kai-Shek on the 4th floor.
There are also several exhibit halls with various art exhibitions. The parks surrounding the monument are lovely and, had it not been windy and rainy, I could have spent much of the day walking around them. Instead, I took the metro to some outlying areas, where I walked around a couple of malls without finding anything (other than a late lunch) that I wanted to buy.
Eventually, I went back to Taipei Main, walked back to the hotel, and retrieved my bag, before taking the commuter train to the Airport MRT Station in Taiyuan, which was a short walk through the Gloria Outlets to Hotel Cozzi Blu, where I’d spend that night and the next. This was a much fancier (and, hence, pricier) hotel, but the price was still fairly reasonable. The room I got was huge and the bathroom was equipped with a Japanese washlet toilet (as well as a shower that drained in the actual shower enclosure, rather than the middle of the floor.) They also provide free snacks, e.g. a packet of potato chips and a small can of coke.
The main reason for staying there is that it’s right next to XPark, which is the aquarium that had triggered this part of the trip. It was also conveniently close to the airport for my early flight on Wednesday.
Xpark did prove to be worth going to, especially if you like jellyfish. (And, yes, I know you are supposed to call them jellies, but old habits die hard.)
They do have a fairly wide assortment of other things, e.g. fish of all sizes (including sharks and rays, but none of my beloved sea dragons). They put the penguins near their cafe, with a tunnel for them to walk over the cafe, which is pretty cute. They also have an outdoor area (with umbrellas to borrow, if you didn’t have your own), but the weather was pretty unpleasant.
My intention had been to use a couple of hours that afternoon to shop. There was, however, a catch. The typhoon that had done some serious damage to the Phillippines was heading towards Taiwan which was why there was so much heavy rain. The city of Taoyuan had pretty much shut down, so both the Gloria Outlets and the nearby Landmark Plaza Mall were closed. There was allegedly a yarn store a short walk away, but it was closed. I retreated to my hotel room to do puzzles and read instead. I was also concerned about my flight the next day. So it was not exactly the best travel day ever. However, the nearby convenience store was open and provided food for supper. (Convenience stores in most Asian countries are, in general, far superior to any American 7-11 or, even, Wawa.)
In the end, my flight did go out in the morning. It was, however, a little over an hour late. Since I had only a two hour layover at BKK, I was concerned about my connection. You can only imagine my relief when I got off the plane and there was a woman standing there with a sign with my connecting flight info and my name. Yes, Thai Air had sent an escort to get me to the flight to Frankfurt. It was a long walk - and a bit confusing since it was going out from the satellite terminal. I got to the gate about 15 minutes before boarding started and collapsed for the next 11 1/2 hours. I’ll pick up the story in the next post.
Another Vet Visit/Retirement Party
Dec. 4th, 2025 08:12 pmdays_unfoldingI was looking at ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
holiday_wishes. I don't need anything, but it would be nice to get a surprise present. (I don't get Christmas presents anymore because my mom, aunt, and uncle have died, and my dad doesn't give presents for reasons known only to him.) I thought that I might ask for toys and treats for the fur faces. I created an Amazon wish list for them, and I need to gather pictures of them.
Woke up at 7 AM. The cats did not leave me fecal samples. Sigh.
Took Oliver and Lily to the vet for their checkup and shots. It's really cold out, so I brought a blanket to put over their carriers. Lily had an ear infection, but otherwise, they checked out fine. Oh, and they said that Oliver and Lily were at good weights. I thought that Oliver was a bit chunky, but they said that he was just a big cat.
I think that I'm going to get a combination long-term care and life insurance policy, offered by my work. I don't need the life insurance, but long-term care would be nice to have. The question is how much I can afford.
I'm tired. I didn't get my lunchtime nap because the vet appointment took so long. I'd nap after my boss's retirement party, but the sleep doctor said to not take evening naps and just go to bed early, so I guess that I'll go to bed early.
I'm telling Gracie that it's okay that the cats don't want to play with her, and we're all about consent. She is not convinced.
Got my new (well, I got it a while ago, but haven't used it yet) space heater/fan working. It seems to work well.
I got the estimate for the electrical work on the garage, and holy cow, expensive. But they seem to know what they're doing.
Went to my grandboss’ retirement party. It was wall-to-wall people. I got about a few seconds of a hug with her and she told me to eat. So I did and sat with a kind of a fringe group outside the party room. Then I left.
Fed the critters and the dogs are now outside. I want to post and then go to bed. I'm wiped out.
holiday_wishes. I don't need anything, but it would be nice to get a surprise present. (I don't get Christmas presents anymore because my mom, aunt, and uncle have died, and my dad doesn't give presents for reasons known only to him.) I thought that I might ask for toys and treats for the fur faces. I created an Amazon wish list for them, and I need to gather pictures of them.Woke up at 7 AM. The cats did not leave me fecal samples. Sigh.
Took Oliver and Lily to the vet for their checkup and shots. It's really cold out, so I brought a blanket to put over their carriers. Lily had an ear infection, but otherwise, they checked out fine. Oh, and they said that Oliver and Lily were at good weights. I thought that Oliver was a bit chunky, but they said that he was just a big cat.
I think that I'm going to get a combination long-term care and life insurance policy, offered by my work. I don't need the life insurance, but long-term care would be nice to have. The question is how much I can afford.
I'm tired. I didn't get my lunchtime nap because the vet appointment took so long. I'd nap after my boss's retirement party, but the sleep doctor said to not take evening naps and just go to bed early, so I guess that I'll go to bed early.
I'm telling Gracie that it's okay that the cats don't want to play with her, and we're all about consent. She is not convinced.
Got my new (well, I got it a while ago, but haven't used it yet) space heater/fan working. It seems to work well.
I got the estimate for the electrical work on the garage, and holy cow, expensive. But they seem to know what they're doing.
Went to my grandboss’ retirement party. It was wall-to-wall people. I got about a few seconds of a hug with her and she told me to eat. So I did and sat with a kind of a fringe group outside the party room. Then I left.
Fed the critters and the dogs are now outside. I want to post and then go to bed. I'm wiped out.
culture and context
Dec. 4th, 2025 05:50 pmsomedayseattleIn my previous life as a walking human being, I was quite an active photographer. My goal for every week was at least 100 photos. Out of that would come four or five great shots. I kept them corralled on a page over yonder at Flickr. In early 2023 the camera on my iPod gave up the ghost. I still had professional equipment as well as a pocket camera, but they didn’t have the convenience of the iPod. I had to remember to bring them and if I didn’t, I was out of luck. Towards the end of 2023 I got sick and was hospitalized. Being in the hospital and not having the convenience of the iPod put an end to my photography. I changed my Flickr page from professional back to basic. Fast forward to today and I have a new phone with an excellent camera. I’m not fully biped yet, but I am far more mobile than I was two years ago. I’m out and about, taking pictures of every little thing I see. Some nice and artistic & others just documenting the details of every day life.
So with that in mind I am upgrading my Flickr account back to professional. All 31 pages, over 3000 photos, are now available for public consumption. Drop in and you can put names to faces. Pictures of all the people in The Weirdness Parade that is my life. You’ll seetinytadpole, Da 2 Headstrong Sistas, Maxwell, Your Favorite Mustached Black Cat. You’ll see pictures of J-Nic and going back a couple years you’ll see Detective Ziggy Pigglesworth and Da Lady Zoe Blubbington. . You van even see pics of my full-on mountain man look whilst hospitalized.
Framed prints or now available !!!
Instructions-
1-Pick out a photograph. Click the 'print' button. Print the photograph.
2-Go to the Dollar tree and purchase a frame.
3-Insert printed photograph into recently purchased frame. BOOM!! You got yourself a framed pic.
4-Send me $19.99 for licensing fees and you’re all set!
Check out my page here. If you have a Flickr page send me a link so I can check you out.
So with that in mind I am upgrading my Flickr account back to professional. All 31 pages, over 3000 photos, are now available for public consumption. Drop in and you can put names to faces. Pictures of all the people in The Weirdness Parade that is my life. You’ll see
tinytadpole, Da 2 Headstrong Sistas, Maxwell, Your Favorite Mustached Black Cat. You’ll see pictures of J-Nic and going back a couple years you’ll see Detective Ziggy Pigglesworth and Da Lady Zoe Blubbington. . You van even see pics of my full-on mountain man look whilst hospitalized.Framed prints or now available !!!
Instructions-
1-Pick out a photograph. Click the 'print' button. Print the photograph.
2-Go to the Dollar tree and purchase a frame.
3-Insert printed photograph into recently purchased frame. BOOM!! You got yourself a framed pic.
4-Send me $19.99 for licensing fees and you’re all set!
Check out my page here. If you have a Flickr page send me a link so I can check you out.
(no subject)
Dec. 4th, 2025 12:26 pmgreghousesgfNot much going on here. They're doing another one of those apt bldg parties tomorrow, I might as well go over there then.
(no subject)
Dec. 4th, 2025 02:58 pmmaju3. What is your favorite fictional story? (novel, movie, fairytale, etc.) Too many to count really, but I guess one of my favourites is the whole Anne of Green Gables saga, which follows Anne through her life from when she was adopted from an orphanage at 11 years old to when she was an older woman with several adult children.
4. Where or who do you turn to when you need good advice? I used to turn to S as well as looking online; now I'm more likely to just look online or perhaps talk to my daughter.
4. Where or who do you turn to when you need good advice? I used to turn to S as well as looking online; now I'm more likely to just look online or perhaps talk to my daughter.
Things that didn't happen...
Dec. 4th, 2025 01:44 pmmajuI'm reading a book in which a family from Atlanta, Georgia is visiting another family just outside of Anchorage, Alaska, for Christmas. The daughter of one of the families is attracted to the son of the other family (and it's mutual). However, parts of the story seem implausible. In one scene, the woman has been working late at night and goes outside around 1 am to clear her head, throwing on a coat and a pair of boots before she goes out, plus picking up a blanket. Just the coat and boots doesn't seem like enough warm outerwear for after midnight in Alaska in December to me. But then she finds the man she's attracted to outside, apparently also clearing his head. At one point he stands up and stretches, and she gets a tantalising glimpse of his flat stomach. Okay then, but that makes it sound like he is dressed very inadequately for after midnight in Alaska in December, doesn't it? Out of curiosity I checked the weather forecast for Anchorage Alaska for the next week, and it seems that the overnight temperatures will be ranging from about 0F to about 6F. That's -18C to -14C. Would someone from Atlanta Georgia be hanging out outside in the middle of the night in those temperatures? It seems highly improbable to me.
Misc boring bits then... news!
Dec. 4th, 2025 09:16 amsusandennisWhen I lie on my side in the bed, my eyes look out on Barbara's terrace. Barbara lives in Assisted Living. She's a lovely lady with very little vision left. Someone has hung a VERY bright set of icicle lights on her terrace rail. I can practically read by the damn things in bed. I thought about asking her to turn them off at night but then decided, fuck it, I can wear the eye shades that I wear in Summer. They aren't uncomfortable and do the job so problem solved.
Laundry day. I have the process started. I forgot to turn on the lotion warmer before I left for volleyball so it's warming now. The paint roller enables me to apply a layer of lotion all over my back and then get dressed without oiling up my clothes.
There are a lot of seasonal activities planned around here and 99%, maybe even 100%, make me want to lock the door of my apartment with me inside. I have never been a fan of holidays but this year, I am really not. Don't know why and don't particularly care. Happily, I don't even have to explain myself to people. I can be what I want to be.
I got a really interesting email this morning from a French artist asking permission to use me in an AI art piece - specifically in an upcoming exhibit in a French High School. I cannot even believe that sentence. What a wonderful time we live in.
His name is Matéo Picard and his note was delightful. He was, oh so very respectfully, asking my permission to use my data. Of course, all of the stuff is out there for the world to see, no permission needed. He gave me a wide runway for landing a response of 'oh no, that's too creepy' which I really appreciate but do not need. I think it's fascinating. I have more than 25 years of daily journal entries, and photos back to the beginning of Flickr and Tweets and Bluesky posts and that autobiography I wrote and of course my now very old website. I mean there's a shit load to scrape from. It would be fodder for an artificial dummy but artificial intelligence could really go to town.
What amazing fun. And I love his website.
Ok the lotion is warm. Time to get greased up and dressed.
Laundry day. I have the process started. I forgot to turn on the lotion warmer before I left for volleyball so it's warming now. The paint roller enables me to apply a layer of lotion all over my back and then get dressed without oiling up my clothes.
There are a lot of seasonal activities planned around here and 99%, maybe even 100%, make me want to lock the door of my apartment with me inside. I have never been a fan of holidays but this year, I am really not. Don't know why and don't particularly care. Happily, I don't even have to explain myself to people. I can be what I want to be.
I got a really interesting email this morning from a French artist asking permission to use me in an AI art piece - specifically in an upcoming exhibit in a French High School. I cannot even believe that sentence. What a wonderful time we live in.
His name is Matéo Picard and his note was delightful. He was, oh so very respectfully, asking my permission to use my data. Of course, all of the stuff is out there for the world to see, no permission needed. He gave me a wide runway for landing a response of 'oh no, that's too creepy' which I really appreciate but do not need. I think it's fascinating. I have more than 25 years of daily journal entries, and photos back to the beginning of Flickr and Tweets and Bluesky posts and that autobiography I wrote and of course my now very old website. I mean there's a shit load to scrape from. It would be fodder for an artificial dummy but artificial intelligence could really go to town.
What amazing fun. And I love his website.
Ok the lotion is warm. Time to get greased up and dressed.
Well, I Said That I Wanted Dogs....
Dec. 3rd, 2025 09:40 pmdays_unfoldingHmm. I've been mulling over adopting another older cat. There is one at the local Humane Society who is four years old, 18 pounds (!), and a lap cat. And he's lived with dogs. I kind of miss having a lap cat. Mimi was one, but Oliver, Lily, and Zara are not. But I wouldn't adopt one until after my trip if at all. NO MORE DOGS!!! I have my hands full with the two of them!
Woke up a little before 7 AM. I want to go back to sleep, but I have to wait until the dogs come in. The dogs came in earlier than I expected, although Gracie stood near the doorway for a while with the warm air coming out, so I’ll get an hour nap. I had a Munchie Bone out to try to get Gracie to come in, and Bella snatched it!
Overslept my nap a little.
My grandboss is having an Open House on Thursday, so I won't go to the Wind concert. The question is whether I go to the choral concert on Sunday.
I need to get my new heater set up in my home office. It's supposed to be a high of 18F/-8C tomorrow!
I gave Bella and Gracie some old food that Bella was refusing to eat because I'm low on the puppy food that they've been eating. (Bella has gained weight, so I need to get her on other food.) Gracie started to eat it, so Bella pushed her way in and started eating it! Jealousy!
Cranky cats. Oliver and Lily are squabbling.
I really want to take a nap, but I have 1) piano class, 2) litter box cleaning so that I can get a stool sample from the cats, and 3) getting the recycling out. And my sleep doctor told me not to take naps in the evening, but to go to bed early instead. And I do need to get up early to get the stool samples. Oh, and 4) get the clothes together for the Open House tomorrow.
Piano went well. My fingers are getting used to the keys again. I worried about Zara because she wasn’t checking out what I was doing, only to find that she was sleeping behind me while I was playing! She came over at the end of the class.
I got my Land’s End sweats (hmm, I could wear them until I change for the Open House tomorrow) and Zara’s heated bed.
I need to figure out how I can get the recycling bin out because I’ll have to drag it through 10 inches of snow. And the pickup people want us to shovel a spot for the bins. Ugh. I don’t know how I can dig out a spot for the recycling in the dark, so I’m going to give up for tonight. I can dig out a path and spot on the weekend when I can get out during the day.
OY. I let Bella and Gracie out, and Gracie was barking non-stop at a recycling bin (or at least, that was my only guess as to what she was barking at. So I got Bella in, and started trying to bribe Gracie with a hot dog so that I could grab her. She was too wily. I kept at it for a long time, but eventually went in and ate dinner. Then I opened the door, and she was almost ready to come in, and Bella burst out! I got Bella in with a hot dog (she'll do anything for a hot dog), and tempted Gracie with a donut. She was interested, and I got her to come on the porch. I opened the door and threw the donut in. It worked; Gracie came in. Whew. (Some neighbors across the street go to bed at 9 PM, and it was almost 9, so I was really stressing.)
Other people on the street got their recycling bin out, so I could have done so, but I was busy chasing Gracie.
Then I looked for the bag with the fecal sample vials, only to find that they fell out of the pocket of my purse, and the dogs did something with them. I was about ready to cry at this point. But then it occurred to me that I could use plastic baggies for the samples. Bella had left a nice sample outside, so I went out with a baggie, got hers, and put it in the refrigerator (ick). Now all I need to do is clean litter boxes to make it easy to get samples from the cats. I decided to sit and post and calm down a little first. Oh, and I need to sort out clothes for the shindig tomorrow.
Woke up a little before 7 AM. I want to go back to sleep, but I have to wait until the dogs come in. The dogs came in earlier than I expected, although Gracie stood near the doorway for a while with the warm air coming out, so I’ll get an hour nap. I had a Munchie Bone out to try to get Gracie to come in, and Bella snatched it!
Overslept my nap a little.
My grandboss is having an Open House on Thursday, so I won't go to the Wind concert. The question is whether I go to the choral concert on Sunday.
I need to get my new heater set up in my home office. It's supposed to be a high of 18F/-8C tomorrow!
I gave Bella and Gracie some old food that Bella was refusing to eat because I'm low on the puppy food that they've been eating. (Bella has gained weight, so I need to get her on other food.) Gracie started to eat it, so Bella pushed her way in and started eating it! Jealousy!
Cranky cats. Oliver and Lily are squabbling.
I really want to take a nap, but I have 1) piano class, 2) litter box cleaning so that I can get a stool sample from the cats, and 3) getting the recycling out. And my sleep doctor told me not to take naps in the evening, but to go to bed early instead. And I do need to get up early to get the stool samples. Oh, and 4) get the clothes together for the Open House tomorrow.
Piano went well. My fingers are getting used to the keys again. I worried about Zara because she wasn’t checking out what I was doing, only to find that she was sleeping behind me while I was playing! She came over at the end of the class.
I got my Land’s End sweats (hmm, I could wear them until I change for the Open House tomorrow) and Zara’s heated bed.
I need to figure out how I can get the recycling bin out because I’ll have to drag it through 10 inches of snow. And the pickup people want us to shovel a spot for the bins. Ugh. I don’t know how I can dig out a spot for the recycling in the dark, so I’m going to give up for tonight. I can dig out a path and spot on the weekend when I can get out during the day.
OY. I let Bella and Gracie out, and Gracie was barking non-stop at a recycling bin (or at least, that was my only guess as to what she was barking at. So I got Bella in, and started trying to bribe Gracie with a hot dog so that I could grab her. She was too wily. I kept at it for a long time, but eventually went in and ate dinner. Then I opened the door, and she was almost ready to come in, and Bella burst out! I got Bella in with a hot dog (she'll do anything for a hot dog), and tempted Gracie with a donut. She was interested, and I got her to come on the porch. I opened the door and threw the donut in. It worked; Gracie came in. Whew. (Some neighbors across the street go to bed at 9 PM, and it was almost 9, so I was really stressing.)
Other people on the street got their recycling bin out, so I could have done so, but I was busy chasing Gracie.
Then I looked for the bag with the fecal sample vials, only to find that they fell out of the pocket of my purse, and the dogs did something with them. I was about ready to cry at this point. But then it occurred to me that I could use plastic baggies for the samples. Bella had left a nice sample outside, so I went out with a baggie, got hers, and put it in the refrigerator (ick). Now all I need to do is clean litter boxes to make it easy to get samples from the cats. I decided to sit and post and calm down a little first. Oh, and I need to sort out clothes for the shindig tomorrow.
Westward Circumnavigation - An Introduction
Dec. 3rd, 2025 09:28 pmfauxkloreI did promise to write about the around the world trip that I took in November, so let’s start with the planning. I know a lot of people who say they like to travel but hate planning. I’m not one of those people. I love planning travel. I’m generally happy to offer travel advice to other people, but planning my own trips are one of my favorite things.
The real genesis of this trip was in May 2024, when I was in Lisbon before the Travelers’ Century Club conference in the Azores. I did a hop-on hop-off bus tour and went to the Lisbon Oceanarium, which is one of the largest aquariums in Europe. That got me wondering where the largest ones are. One of which is the National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium in Hengchun, Taiwan.
When I was planning this trip, I did a bit more research and one site recommended Xpark, which is near the Taipei Airport instead. It was much easier to get to and there were other major sites to see in Taipei, so I decided that would be a good choice.
But the real reason for the trip was that back in 2000 I had taken a trip in which I circumnavigated the world going eastward. My route was Los Angeles to St. Petersburg, Russia (via Frankfurt, Germany), a train to Moscow where I joined a tour to Tuva, Siberia, and Mongolia, which ended with a flight to Beijing before flying home to Los Angeles.
Because I am slightly crazy, I decided that I should also circumnavigate the world going westward. I’m not sure where I saw an ad for a transatlantic crossing on the Queen Mary 2 from Hamburg, Germany to New York. The dates worked for me and the price was reasonable. I was also able to use frequent flyer miles for the international flights. That resulted in not quite enough days in either Taiwan or Hamburg, but so it goes. I’ll write about each leg in the next few posts.
The real genesis of this trip was in May 2024, when I was in Lisbon before the Travelers’ Century Club conference in the Azores. I did a hop-on hop-off bus tour and went to the Lisbon Oceanarium, which is one of the largest aquariums in Europe. That got me wondering where the largest ones are. One of which is the National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium in Hengchun, Taiwan.
When I was planning this trip, I did a bit more research and one site recommended Xpark, which is near the Taipei Airport instead. It was much easier to get to and there were other major sites to see in Taipei, so I decided that would be a good choice.
But the real reason for the trip was that back in 2000 I had taken a trip in which I circumnavigated the world going eastward. My route was Los Angeles to St. Petersburg, Russia (via Frankfurt, Germany), a train to Moscow where I joined a tour to Tuva, Siberia, and Mongolia, which ended with a flight to Beijing before flying home to Los Angeles.
Because I am slightly crazy, I decided that I should also circumnavigate the world going westward. I’m not sure where I saw an ad for a transatlantic crossing on the Queen Mary 2 from Hamburg, Germany to New York. The dates worked for me and the price was reasonable. I was also able to use frequent flyer miles for the international flights. That resulted in not quite enough days in either Taiwan or Hamburg, but so it goes. I’ll write about each leg in the next few posts.
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Dec. 3rd, 2025 12:53 pmgreghousesgfReally wore myself out getting groceries but it was worth it, got some good stuff. Just finished a very nice lunch of pasta w/chicken and vegetables.
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Dec. 3rd, 2025 02:52 pmmajuDuolingo is all the rage here at the moment. Eden is learning Italian, Violet is learning Spanish, and Aria appears to be learning both Spanish and Italian, with a lot of help from her father since she is still learning to read and write. Violet has been busy making sure that I'm following each of them and they're each following me. Poor Violet can't roll/trill her R's the way she needs to in order to speak Spanish correctly; Eden, who can, and I both spent some time early this morning coaching her on where to place her tongue etc, but she just can't do it. I know there are some genetic differences in what people can do with their tongues, so maybe this is a genetic thing too. I have to wonder though, how this would work if she was actually Spanish. Are there Spanish speakers who can't roll their R's? Indonesian has the same rolled R's, and I know these aren't the only two languages that do. (Of course I just did a quick Google search on this question, and it appears children who can't do the Spanish R correctly can have speech therapy to learn it.)
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Dec. 3rd, 2025 12:55 pmmajuIt was raining for most of the day yesterday, so I didn't leave the house. This morning it was just below freezing when I got up, but had risen to 1C/33F by about 9 am so I was able to go for a walk, dressed in several layers and with my ears covered. I had received a phone call yesterday from the Stop&Shop pharmacy about a prescription from the dermatologist they were holding for me, so I walked over there to pick it up. I paid $62 for two tubes of cream, which is more than I'm used to paying at Kaiser. Right now I guess I'm between drug plans, because my Wellcare plan doesn't cover me here and my Humana plan doesn't kick in until 1st January. I did enjoy the walk in the sun.
I have to say it's been a real education navigating Medicare and the various extras (supplement plan and prescription drug plan) after being so sheltered by having S's government Kaiser plan which covered everything. (There were co-pays but they were minimal.) It's such a shame Kaiser doesn't extend to Connecticut.
Speaking of Kaiser, on 24th October I received an email from whoever is administering my health insurance payments, telling me I would be moving out of Kaiser's service area and I needed to email a request to enroll in a new plan (the included a link to available plans) along with my new address. I replied with the requested information the same day, and I still have not received an acknowledgement or notification of how much to pay and how to make payments for the new plan. They were almost this slow at the beginning of 2025 when I was trying to get my coverage continued, so I'm not surprised, but I'm very glad I have Medicare as well. I did some research into Federal Employee plans and it seems you can keep them along with Medicare, which is not true of some other employee plans as far as I can tell.
US healthcare is such a mess.
I have to say it's been a real education navigating Medicare and the various extras (supplement plan and prescription drug plan) after being so sheltered by having S's government Kaiser plan which covered everything. (There were co-pays but they were minimal.) It's such a shame Kaiser doesn't extend to Connecticut.
Speaking of Kaiser, on 24th October I received an email from whoever is administering my health insurance payments, telling me I would be moving out of Kaiser's service area and I needed to email a request to enroll in a new plan (the included a link to available plans) along with my new address. I replied with the requested information the same day, and I still have not received an acknowledgement or notification of how much to pay and how to make payments for the new plan. They were almost this slow at the beginning of 2025 when I was trying to get my coverage continued, so I'm not surprised, but I'm very glad I have Medicare as well. I did some research into Federal Employee plans and it seems you can keep them along with Medicare, which is not true of some other employee plans as far as I can tell.
US healthcare is such a mess.
(no subject)
Dec. 3rd, 2025 12:38 pmmajuAn anonymous person has given me six months of paid access to DW. Thank you, whoever you are, for your generosity!
Still basking in the glow
Dec. 3rd, 2025 07:41 amsusandennisI'm still not yet over the fact that I turn on my lamp in the morning and the light comes on immediately and does not flicker and stays on until I turn it off. Fucking miracle. I ordered more of those bulbs. One for the bathroom overhead fixture and two for my bed side lamps. All their bulbs work fine but the automation is flaky on each and they require 3 apps total. These bulbs will knock out two of the apps and delete the flaky.
Hazel dropped by last night. She says that the hospice workers are talking about letting John come back home (from the nursing unit). He has, apparently, after months of not eating, found his appetite. He was supposed to be dead way before now. But decided against it, I guess. She asked me to have Christmas dinner with the and their son. It was a lovely thought, but I think, no. I don't want to get chummy with the son and make it very easy for him to assume I'm ready to step in with their care/needs/etc. They both need a lot and I am just not up for it.
Also last night, I got an email telling me I'd been selected to serve on the Food and Beverage committee next year. I signed up for it the last two years but didn't make the cut til this one. Which turns out to be good. The new chair is sharp and nice and, hopefully, it will be interesting. It means two meetings a month and I already go to one of them so really just adding one.
Yesterday I changed the comforter on my bed to the winterwinterwinter one. It's about 14 inches thick. Of course, not really, but it is a very nice one with a lovely print and an even more lovely texture to it and burrowing under it, when it's cold, is the best sleep you can get. Ever. I finally have the temperature stable in here so that it's very cold at night and refreshingly pleasant during the day. The new thermostat they put in helps make controlling easier.
Also yesterday, I gave away my TV. I had a smallish TV in the bedroom that I never used. Last Summer I replaced it with a fan, which I never used and should probably get rid of, too. I put the TV under the bed. But the chaise cushion for the couch is also under there and it was getting crowded and bugging me. So I hauled out the TV (and was then able to push the cushion further in so you cannot see it from any angle) and bundled it up with its remote and legs and put it out in the elbow with a 'free' sign. It lasted an hour. It's such a lovely way to recycle shit. Easy peasy and someone is happy for sure.
I'm not sure what's on tap for today. I was toying with the idea of not swimming but it's so nice and gray and cloudy out, it's hard not to take advantage. So I probably will.
Hazel dropped by last night. She says that the hospice workers are talking about letting John come back home (from the nursing unit). He has, apparently, after months of not eating, found his appetite. He was supposed to be dead way before now. But decided against it, I guess. She asked me to have Christmas dinner with the and their son. It was a lovely thought, but I think, no. I don't want to get chummy with the son and make it very easy for him to assume I'm ready to step in with their care/needs/etc. They both need a lot and I am just not up for it.
Also last night, I got an email telling me I'd been selected to serve on the Food and Beverage committee next year. I signed up for it the last two years but didn't make the cut til this one. Which turns out to be good. The new chair is sharp and nice and, hopefully, it will be interesting. It means two meetings a month and I already go to one of them so really just adding one.
Yesterday I changed the comforter on my bed to the winterwinterwinter one. It's about 14 inches thick. Of course, not really, but it is a very nice one with a lovely print and an even more lovely texture to it and burrowing under it, when it's cold, is the best sleep you can get. Ever. I finally have the temperature stable in here so that it's very cold at night and refreshingly pleasant during the day. The new thermostat they put in helps make controlling easier.
Also yesterday, I gave away my TV. I had a smallish TV in the bedroom that I never used. Last Summer I replaced it with a fan, which I never used and should probably get rid of, too. I put the TV under the bed. But the chaise cushion for the couch is also under there and it was getting crowded and bugging me. So I hauled out the TV (and was then able to push the cushion further in so you cannot see it from any angle) and bundled it up with its remote and legs and put it out in the elbow with a 'free' sign. It lasted an hour. It's such a lovely way to recycle shit. Easy peasy and someone is happy for sure.
I'm not sure what's on tap for today. I was toying with the idea of not swimming but it's so nice and gray and cloudy out, it's hard not to take advantage. So I probably will.
Medical Day
Dec. 2nd, 2025 08:37 pmdays_unfoldingI had my appointment with the sleep doctor this morning. I was worried if I'd be able to get the car out, but I did. It wound up being a long meeting with the sleep doctor with lots of questions, but she ordered me a CPAP. She said that it would take a week or two to come in, which is a lot faster than the last time. She thought that it was really cool that I'm a librarian, and she also thought my cruise in December sounded cool!
Hmm. I was readingbill_schubert's entry about the medical journal, and that got me wondering if I should keep one. I'm accumulating doctors (psychiatrist at another hospital, primary care, now this sleep doctor, plus possibly more due to my bad knee and tingly hand). Oh, the joys of getting older.
I took Bella to the vet this afternoon. (Luckily, most of my colleagues have pets and many also are getting older, so they're cool about it). She dealt with the exam and shots all right. What freaked her out? Getting her nails clipped. Okay. They finally got it done with a lot of squealing from her. The visit cost a small fortune, but they ran blood work on her to have a baseline if she ever gets sick. Bella doesn't understand why I can't pet her while driving. She loved having my undivided attention at the vet. The vet commented that they're seeing a lot of me (and I have an appointment for Oliver and Lily on Thursday).
I received my Land's End packages. That was fast. Oh cool! One of them is the coat.
I'm trying to decide whether to take a beginning crocheting class in January. It would be interesting, but I don't have a lot of time to crochet.
I'm getting a lot of Facebook ads for jewelry because I clicked on one. I found some beaded bracelets that aren't too expensive and look nice. I'm thinking this one and this one.
I’m thinking that it’s too cold (16F) and snowy out to get the garbage out. (It’s supposed to warm up tomorrow. It’s even so cold that the dogs didn’t want to stay out long.) I don’t have much. I’m trying to think of low-energy stuff to do because I’m tired. I want to go through the mail. Then what? I had planned to get my clothes out of the bathroom, but that will require standing. Maybe I could grab a bunch and fold it on the kitchen table.
Dog squabble. I’m not sure what that was about.
Fed us all. I’m beat. I think that I’ll go to bed soon.
Crap! My glasses (and they were my driving glasses) must have fallen out of my pocket and they're gone. I just ordered two more pairs. Did I say crap?
Hmm. I was reading
bill_schubert's entry about the medical journal, and that got me wondering if I should keep one. I'm accumulating doctors (psychiatrist at another hospital, primary care, now this sleep doctor, plus possibly more due to my bad knee and tingly hand). Oh, the joys of getting older.I took Bella to the vet this afternoon. (Luckily, most of my colleagues have pets and many also are getting older, so they're cool about it). She dealt with the exam and shots all right. What freaked her out? Getting her nails clipped. Okay. They finally got it done with a lot of squealing from her. The visit cost a small fortune, but they ran blood work on her to have a baseline if she ever gets sick. Bella doesn't understand why I can't pet her while driving. She loved having my undivided attention at the vet. The vet commented that they're seeing a lot of me (and I have an appointment for Oliver and Lily on Thursday).
I received my Land's End packages. That was fast. Oh cool! One of them is the coat.
I'm trying to decide whether to take a beginning crocheting class in January. It would be interesting, but I don't have a lot of time to crochet.
I'm getting a lot of Facebook ads for jewelry because I clicked on one. I found some beaded bracelets that aren't too expensive and look nice. I'm thinking this one and this one.
I’m thinking that it’s too cold (16F) and snowy out to get the garbage out. (It’s supposed to warm up tomorrow. It’s even so cold that the dogs didn’t want to stay out long.) I don’t have much. I’m trying to think of low-energy stuff to do because I’m tired. I want to go through the mail. Then what? I had planned to get my clothes out of the bathroom, but that will require standing. Maybe I could grab a bunch and fold it on the kitchen table.
Dog squabble. I’m not sure what that was about.
Fed us all. I’m beat. I think that I’ll go to bed soon.
Crap! My glasses (and they were my driving glasses) must have fallen out of my pocket and they're gone. I just ordered two more pairs. Did I say crap?
Tags:
- bella,
- clothes,
- cpap,
- crocheting,
- dogs,
- glasses,
- jewelry,
- medical journal,
- sleep doctor,
- tired,
- vet
From the Clippings File
Dec. 2nd, 2025 08:23 pmfauxkloreI started writing this before I left on my trip. I suspect I have more things that I intended to include, but I have no idea where they are. I did add a couple of recent items at the end.
I clip interesting things from magazines planning to comment on them later on. Here is an attempt to catch up on them a little bit.
From MIT Spectrum - Spring 2024: This was from an article about the problem of sustainability in the textile industry. There was the astonishing (to me, at least) information that the textile manufacturing industry produces more carbon dioxide equivalent per year than the aviation and maritime industries combined. The other astonishing tidbit was that “the average garment is worn just seven times before it ends up in a landfill.” I, for one, have been known to wear the same garment seven times in the same month. And don’t get me started on how old some of my clothing is. The other day, I was wearing a shirt that I know I bought in 1998. It is getting a bit raggedy at the cuffs, but it’s still usable for travel.
From Technology Review Reader Mailbag: I am not sure what issue this was from. Someone sent in a question asking if it’s true that if everybody just avoided words like “please,” “hello,” and so on when querying AI models, we could save a considerable amount of energy. The response from a climate reporter who had coauthored a story about the energy consumption of large language models said that, essentially, it’s more important for companies to disclose how much energy AI uses “rather than telling us we should be rude to robots.” Personally. I enjoy being rude to robots. Fuck off, ChatGPT!
In Her Footsteps: I didn’t note which issue of MIT Alumni News had this blurb from the class of 1987. The Association of MIT Alumnae (AMITA) created a series of walking tours called In Her Footsteps. Each tour has 9 or 10 stops relating in some way to MIT women’s history. You can find an example on the website of the clio.com. The clio.com site looks like it has a lot of interesting tours and it would be worth some time exploring it.
By the way, when I was looking up an article about this, I ran across the statement that today “43% of MIT first year students identify as women, 44% as men.” That implies that 13% identify as something else (or, presumably, no gender) which is higher than I would have guessed. I usually see figures under 5%. Those are suspect since they come from studies by sources known to be biased, but I haven’t seen estimates higher than 10% before.
Pneumatic Tubes: An article in the July / August 2024 issue of Technology Review discussed the return of pneumatic tube systems. They are particularly common in hospitals, used for transporting samples and medications. But they are also used in factories and warehouses. There are also a handful of places that use pneumatic tubes for garbage disposal, including Roosevelt Island in New York City and Stockholm. I would never have guessed this.
Mennonites: The most recent issue of MIT Alumni News had a story about Madonna Yoder ’17 who is an origami artist, specializing in tessellations. The part of this that intrigued me is that she grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia “where professors from Virginia Tech filled the pews of her Mennonite church.” I don’t know about you, but my mental image of Mennonites is as farmers, not as college professors and certainly not at a well-respected engineering school. Not only did she go to MIT (where she got a degree in Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences), but her brother got a Ph.D. in materials engineering at Virginia Tech.
The Moon: That same recent issue of MIT Alumni News (November / December 2025) had a note from a member of the class of 1976 who wrote “But what I share with my cohort is that any of us, celebrated and unsung alike, can sit with a child and look up at the brilliant full moon together and tell them, ‘Yes, it’s lovely, but you should have seen it before it was walked on.’” I literally laughed out loud at that.
I clip interesting things from magazines planning to comment on them later on. Here is an attempt to catch up on them a little bit.
From MIT Spectrum - Spring 2024: This was from an article about the problem of sustainability in the textile industry. There was the astonishing (to me, at least) information that the textile manufacturing industry produces more carbon dioxide equivalent per year than the aviation and maritime industries combined. The other astonishing tidbit was that “the average garment is worn just seven times before it ends up in a landfill.” I, for one, have been known to wear the same garment seven times in the same month. And don’t get me started on how old some of my clothing is. The other day, I was wearing a shirt that I know I bought in 1998. It is getting a bit raggedy at the cuffs, but it’s still usable for travel.
From Technology Review Reader Mailbag: I am not sure what issue this was from. Someone sent in a question asking if it’s true that if everybody just avoided words like “please,” “hello,” and so on when querying AI models, we could save a considerable amount of energy. The response from a climate reporter who had coauthored a story about the energy consumption of large language models said that, essentially, it’s more important for companies to disclose how much energy AI uses “rather than telling us we should be rude to robots.” Personally. I enjoy being rude to robots. Fuck off, ChatGPT!
In Her Footsteps: I didn’t note which issue of MIT Alumni News had this blurb from the class of 1987. The Association of MIT Alumnae (AMITA) created a series of walking tours called In Her Footsteps. Each tour has 9 or 10 stops relating in some way to MIT women’s history. You can find an example on the website of the clio.com. The clio.com site looks like it has a lot of interesting tours and it would be worth some time exploring it.
By the way, when I was looking up an article about this, I ran across the statement that today “43% of MIT first year students identify as women, 44% as men.” That implies that 13% identify as something else (or, presumably, no gender) which is higher than I would have guessed. I usually see figures under 5%. Those are suspect since they come from studies by sources known to be biased, but I haven’t seen estimates higher than 10% before.
Pneumatic Tubes: An article in the July / August 2024 issue of Technology Review discussed the return of pneumatic tube systems. They are particularly common in hospitals, used for transporting samples and medications. But they are also used in factories and warehouses. There are also a handful of places that use pneumatic tubes for garbage disposal, including Roosevelt Island in New York City and Stockholm. I would never have guessed this.
Mennonites: The most recent issue of MIT Alumni News had a story about Madonna Yoder ’17 who is an origami artist, specializing in tessellations. The part of this that intrigued me is that she grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia “where professors from Virginia Tech filled the pews of her Mennonite church.” I don’t know about you, but my mental image of Mennonites is as farmers, not as college professors and certainly not at a well-respected engineering school. Not only did she go to MIT (where she got a degree in Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences), but her brother got a Ph.D. in materials engineering at Virginia Tech.
The Moon: That same recent issue of MIT Alumni News (November / December 2025) had a note from a member of the class of 1976 who wrote “But what I share with my cohort is that any of us, celebrated and unsung alike, can sit with a child and look up at the brilliant full moon together and tell them, ‘Yes, it’s lovely, but you should have seen it before it was walked on.’” I literally laughed out loud at that.