Whispers

It was well over 90 degrees today, got up to 96 with a heat index of 106. So, I think that translates as ...40 C, and 50 C? We weren't taught the conversions well when I was in school? They started to teach us - in or around the fifth or sixth grade, then decided it was too hard and gave up. (Basically the adults didn't understand it well enough to pass it down to the kids. When I state that the American Educational System is lacking, I'm not exaggerating.)

As a result of the heat, I went out in brief snippets. Luckily it wasn't that bad when I set off to work at or around 6:50 am. I got a matcha latte at Gregory's around 10 am, still not too bad. At noon - when I got a salad at Pret, it was around 90, and I was only out for about twenty minutes - ten were in Pret, and by the time I got back it was 92. It rained while I was on the train going home (it's air conditioned) and by the time I got off the train cooled down a tad due to the rain. So overall? Not too bad. I work near the harbor and the east river and South Brooklyn doesn't get that hot. (I live and work on islands. NYC is basically a series of islands. Manhattan, Staten Island, Long Island (encompasses Queens and Brooklyn), the Bronx, Governor's Island, Roosevelt Island, Liberty Island, Ellis Island. So the air smells like it does near water, and the weather acts the way it would near and around water. Having lived landlocked (with no water nearby), and near mountains but not water (Colorado Springs) - I can tell you I prefer living near water. It comforts me. I need trees, flowers, and water. Also grass. I do not need to grow it. I just need to be near it. )



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

Sigh, yes. I have a complicated love/hate relationship with fandom. Also, mixed feelings about being a fan myself. As a result of this? I tend for the most part to lurk on the outskirts of it, or jump in and jump out again. It's rare that I participate.

I've participated in a few here and there. Buffy/Angel and to a lesser degree Whedon fandom. ( Read more... )

Sketched out my next watercolor of a woman that I keep seeing on the subway - who today wore a floral print tank and short short cut of jeans, and glitter thongs, with hair extensions, and bag with tassels. ( Read more... )

Finished watching White Lotus S3 over the weekend, and it haunts me.
It was much better than I expected. I'd fallen asleep during White Lotus S2, and couldn't get into White Lotus S1. The appeal of Jennifer Coolidge was lost on me, and I really didn't like the cast in the second season, they all grated on my nerves. I can't stand Michael Imperial. So I didn't expect to like S3, at all. But, it had a cast that intrigued me - Jason Issacs (Star Trek Discovery, among others), Walter Goggins (Fall Out, Justified), Carrie Coon (Gilded Age), Leslie Bibb, Natasha Rothwell, Scott Glenn (whose gotten old and looks skeletal), and Sam Rockwell. Plus numerous nominations.

I watched...and it was compelling. And haunting. Very dark comedy - I didn't find it funny. (I can't say I find any of the comedies nominated funny - maybe Hacks?) And it wasn't predictable - it actually surprised me.
I thought it would go darker than it did. And different people would die.

It does a good dissection of friendship and superficial relationships, or masking in relationships, where folks aren't authentic or genuine with each other, and lie with pasted on smiles, and grins that never quite leave their faces. The only ones who don't are in misery and wracked with pain.
And they all appear to be chasing pleasure, purpose and happiness which eludes them the more they try to chase it. There's an emptiness there, and a strong message about spirituality.

I was astonished how good Jason Isacs, Walter Goggins, and Carrie Coon were.

Started watching Great British Sewing Bee on Roku channel, which is kind of interesting? I'm not really a sewer, so some of it is lost on me. And it's more sewing focused than fashion focused?

July Question Memage

19. Do you like spicy foods such as chilli peppers?

Yes on spicy foods. No on chilli peppers. I have to be careful. I like them, my esophagus and gut are more particular. Or they don't always like me. I accidentally took a small bit of the hottest pepper on the planet once, aka the Carolina Reaper - my lips burned for days. I didn't get it past them.
Avoid at all costs. The heat is in the seeds and juice. I mistook it for a different pepper and cut it up in a salad.

I can do spicy more than most. I like wasabi, sirachi, and tabasco for example. And put pepper (black pepper and red pepper crushed) on a lot of things, more than salt.

20. Are there any artisan food markets or farmer’s markets held close to where you live? Do you visit often?

Yes. Farmer markets are plentiful - Across the street from my work place every Tuesday (not big, but there), and about a twenty-thirty minute walk every Sunday from my apartment. Also lots of indoor artisan food markets. It's NYC. It has everything.

21. Have you ever traced your family tree?

Yes, fell down the rabbit hole with it once and traced all the way back to the 1690s Scotland and Britain, also 1690s in the US. How accurate it is, don't know. It's hard to verify anything further back than the 1700s. (Because the records don't survive). Germany was mostly destroyed in WWII, and the Native Americans, along with the African-Americans destroyed a lot of theirs for well, obvious reasons. France also lost a lot records in WWII. As did Spain.

But Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England, and Britain in general - not a problem, they did a better job of preserving records, apparently.

It does get confusing the further back you go, and I gave up. I have relatives who are into it - though.

22. Do you know how to play backgammon? How about chess?

Yes to both. But haven't played in years, so it's unlikely I remember the rules or how. Last time was about ten years ago. I prefer backgammon, it's quicker. Chess takes forever.

23. Do you own a coffee machine? What’s your favourite type of coffee?

No. I can't drink coffee - only decafe, on occasion. The acidity and caffeine concentration make me ill.

24. How are you feeling today?

Tired and kind of spacy, also irritable. Sleep deprived. Going to bed now, in the hopes of remedying it.