gilda_elise

Sunny, warm(ish) and lovely the past several days. Rain predicted for late Friday into Saturday; my garden will be happy!

What I Just Finished Reading

Fourth Wing was, uh, everything I expected. I am SO not the audience for romantasy, but, as we used to say about our kids devouring Babysitter's Club or Goosebumps, "At least they are reading!" For a Goodreads Community Challenge.

Black Woods Blue Sky, by Eowyn Ivey. Ivey is a hometown girl, from the same town in Alaska where we lived, so of course I'll read everything she writes. The descriptive prose here was so evocative, and made me so homesick, while the plot, with its impending sense of dread, kept me glued to my couch.

rachelmanija, take a look at this and let me know what you think of it. For A to Z Authors.

Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet, by Hannah Ritchie. "Don't believe gloomy headlines!" is the message here - yes, things are bad, but not quite as bad as they could be. Well written and interesting but oh, so many graphs. SO MANY. A to Z Authors.

What I Am Currently Reading/What I Am Reading Next

The Briar Club, by Kate Quinn, and Encounters at the Heart of the World, by Elizabeth A. Fenn.

Question of the Day: Out of Character Meme, from

minoanmiss. Suppose you were on the phone with someone who knows you and you wanted to alert them that you were in a Bad Situation. What's the most out of character thing you could say? My reply was, "The Star Wars movies are the most asinine things ever produced."

days_unfolding

I ran my errands. The local store didn’t have Mrs. Meyers, but had Bona, which is supposed to be a gentler cleaner with less chemicals. (I hate to say “organic” because what does that mean really?)

I’m having problems falling asleep. Hell. Overslept an hour. Scrambled to get ready to go. Dropped Bella off at doggie daycare. (They didn’t have a record of the reservation, but they said that they had space.) Bella looked excited. Made it to the meeting. I was stressing because I thought that it started at 8:30 AM, but it started at 9.

Back from my meeting. We went to an escape room afterwards, which was kind of fun. Then I went to pick up Bella. The day care people loved her and said that she loves people. A few members of the staff came over to say goodbye to her. I got things squared away to board Bella and Oliver there, although I need to send some paperwork for Oliver.

The team is going out for dinner, but I don’t have the money for it, so I’m home for the night. I’m going to take a nap soon. I’m wiped out from the limited sleep and all the peopling. I feel beaten up.

billschubert mentioned an adjustable bed. I want to live here as long as possible, so I’m looking into one. But I want a Marriott mattress so I don’t know. My bed is full size, which makes it tougher. I’m glad that there are people on my friends list ahead of me in the aging game. Food for thought.

I need to get the garbage out, but I’m too wiped out. I’ll gather it when I get up from my nap, and I’m getting up early and can take it out then.

I found a leather chair and ottoman that I like for the library, but I’m worried about the cats sharpening their claws on it. (Chaos trashed a leather loveseat that I had in California, so I speak from experience.)

Crashed out and so did the dog. Started laundry. I did something to my knee, so I'll gather garbage in the morning. I need to find shorts and a t-shirt to sleep in.

lycomingst

Now that the water pipes at the Park are done (I believe), all the roads are being repaved. And they said, let’s start ripping things up in front of the lady’s house who HAS to go to the DMV today . Also, she’s expecting a package delivery (UPS lied about that). So I pulled out and dodged some massive machine and enormous piles of asphalt to go pay the gov’t money to buy a joke “real id”. Coming back I had to drive like a tank over clumps of asphalt.

I’m working in the back yard every day and it’s a bigger job than I thought. I’ve scaled back my expectations and am concentrating on flowers in pots. I have one tomato plant and we wish it the best, but have no high hopes. There is so much weeding to be done and I’m old and kinda lazy so I do a little bit every day. Plus the cats got out one day and now I have to watch for that. They both came back at traditional dinner time like they just drove home from the office.

The rainy season has tapered off and I’m just watching the weather and sun patterns in the yard this year. My bedroom gets a lot of afternoon sun so I’m thinking it’ll be hot in the summer. But not California hot for endless days.

I have not watched The Last of Us yet. I’m putting it off because it’s going to take an emotional toll. I dropped Acorn and they naturally added more episodes of two of my favorite shows immediately afterward, so I had to sign up again.

lessonsinescapology

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days_unfolding

It’s pouring rain out. I’m glad for my raincoat; it kept me dry. Bella lasted for a few minutes and then went up on the porch, out of the rain. The ferns will like it.

Woke up at 7 AM. Bella found an enormous stick that she was dragging around. She chewed up one of the ferns :(

RIP Pope Francis. You were one of the better ones.

Yay. Another colleague is driving a colleague to his hotel (we're having an all-staff meeting Tuesday and Wednesday). So I can stop worrying. I went to lunch late though because the person "on-call" had an errand to run.

I'm trying to get ChatGPT on my phone but am having problems.

Crud. I don't have the money for the Doggie Day Care. I'll call them later today. Actually, I have enough cash. I won't be able to go out to dinner tomorrow night. I neeeed my check from the trust!

I found an outfit to wear tomorrow. Black-and-white striped top, tan vegan leather blazer, and jeans.

My psychiatrist recommended that I take a vitamin B12 and D supplement.

Bella is now insisting on me bribing her with treats to come in. It works though :) Now she’s trotting around with a pair of my underwear that she’s trashed.

I've been exchanging emails with my dad about Paris and Europe. I forgot that he looked for some books in French for me while he was in Paris.

Hmm. I was reading susandennis’ post about WiFi connected shades, and I wonder if I could get one on a timer in my bedroom to open when I’m supposed to wake up. That would rock. I need to do some research. Yes, it looks like it’s possible with Alexa or Google Home.

Got us all fed. Now what? I need to get up early to drop Bella off at doggie daycare and get to my meeting. Oh. I need to run an errand. And go to the library too.

Crud. I got myself together, but my phone’s battery is low. I think that I’ll skip the library today (I need to bring my charger to the meeting tomorrow) and let it charge while I post. I should be able to go to the store though.

I feel like all I'm saying is "No." "Bella, leave Oliver alone." "Oliver, quit chewing my straw." "Bella, stop barking at Lily." But they've settled down now. Sort of.

elusivek

I did not realise it was Easter weekend last week, so I got a pleasant surprise of a long weekend. In Macau we get Good Friday off, but of course my Mom's brain is still in her civil servant and Portuguese rule era and kept asking me why I'm not off on Easter Monday. Because it's not a mandated public holiday.

"But banks are closed!" she counters.

"And I do not work in a bank."

For the record, banks in Macau are closed because it's a public holiday in Hong Kong, and Macau banks are reliant on Hong Kong banks.

Did I get much done over the long weekend? Not much. Sorted out some ebooks into my Kobo, got some running done, and of course worked over the holidays from home when needed. Such is life, and I'm happy with it.

It's mid-April already so that means my upcoming trip to Tokyo is fast approaching. I forgot to book the Pokemon cafe thing in Tokyo. I mean, I remembered to try the day before (they have a book 30 days in advance thing) and I tried their system just to see how it works, and in 6 minutes, it was fully. booked. No problem, that was trial day only. The next day (the day I really meant to book), ... I forgot about it LOL.

I've read that people would go there on-day and try their luck for ad hoc cancellations, but I don't really do that. If it's a walk in type of restaurant, I'd walk in. If it's a reservation only type of place, I'd only go if I had a reservation. I won't ever try my luck with on day cancellations.

That said, that would make my schedule more flexible. I might move things around as I planned.

Then end of May I'm going to Singapore again. It's about time someone goes check the condition of that office we have. It's all above board and proper, I've done all my paperwork already, besides, I'm cheap when I travel, even when it's a work travel, I guess no one complains when I'm the one doing the traveling.

No trip in June anymore, then July and August... the parents are flying to Europe again. So, FINALLY, I can cook for myself, set my own schedule, and do whatever I want. The only thing is I will have to do the same thing I always do when they're traveling: Take Fridays off so someone is home to check on the maid.

September will probably be no trip, there's a possibility my Sis will be accompanying my aunt and cousin to Portugal because of reasons. October I have my Taiwan half marathon thing, and December I have my Tokyo Kawaguchi Lake run (a 17km segment under the Fuji Marathon). There's some not-yet serious planning on a November trip to Qingdao China.

days_unfolding

I watched a couple more episodes of The Golden Girls. The dog is fast asleep, so I’m going to get in my pajamas and join her.

Got up at 7. Bella defended the yard against a squirrel. She ate Lily’s food. Bad dog! She was trotting around with one of my bras that she found.

I was looking for pictures of Mimi because I think that I want the painted urn. Found some.

Oh shit! I just realized that a book that Bella destroyed was a library book! Guess that I need to go over and pay for it.

Tried to nap but couldn’t sleep.

I’m trying to decide what to do. I need to run over to Walmart to get Mrs. Meyers cleaner and Munchie Bones. I need to plant the new plants, which requires cleaning out the garden bed. And I need to clean the bedroom, kitchen, and upstairs.

It’s a little early for lunch, so I guess that I’ll get in the shower. Well, I needed to do laundry, so I guess that I’ll have lunch.

I’m looking for a new housekeeper because mine is moving out of town in June. I found someone who wants to support herself as a new grad student. I’ll contact her later in May.

My towels didn’t dry, so I threw on the clothes that I had on yesterday. I found my shovel and will go out and plant the ferns (done). Then the alarm on the Honda started going off. I shut it off twice, but apparently it had been going off since last night, but I didn’t hear it. I contacted an online Honda mechanic, and he said that the alarm system was built in. He said to bring it to a dealer to read the messages why the alarm was going off, but next week is problematic because of my off-site meetings. He told me how to disconnect the battery, but I didn’t have a small enough wrench. My neighbor came over and disconnected it.

I'm supposed to give someone a ride tomorrow, but that isn't going to work.

The pup is tired from being outside so long. Napped with her.

It’s a little late to go to Walmart. I’ll go tomorrow.

I started reading Judy Collins’ book. It’s interesting.

I don't feel up to starting anything new, so I'm going to crash.

days_unfolding

I found the itineraries for the Japan and Orient Express trips. The Orient Express trip still excites me; Japan not as much. They both are long trips, so I can’t take both of them and I should take a shorter trip as a second trip in the spring or summer next year. I'll look for a shorter cruise. Okay, I like this cruise. Or I could go to Bermuda on another cruise line.

One of the little plastic cat ball toys rolled down the stairs, and Bella chewed it into pieces. Once I get the check from the trust, I will subscribe to plastic cat ball toys if I can. They will get used and abused.

Woke up at 8:30 AM.

I got my blood test results, and my vitamin D and B12 levels are normal. That’s not why I’m so tired.

It’s raining lightly. Oh good, the rain will stop in the afternoon.

I’m using the MediSafe app recommended by bill_schubert. I think that it will be helpful. Notifications are off though, and I need to turn them on.

Crap. The doggie day care is full two of the days. Now what? Called and left a message at another place. There also is a third place, but it’s out of town and not convenient. The place that I called wants to do an evaluation on Thursday, so they couldn’t do Wednesday.

I really feel like going back to sleep. I’ll skip going to the library and go on Monday.

Bella already has a small pile of crap that she’s found to play with in the kitchen. I need to get after it with a broom while it’s still small.

Hmm. I’m looking at urns for Mimi, but nothing is saying ”Mimi” to me. Etsy has some that are painted to look like the cat, which I like.

Oliver came over for snuggles, and Bella promptly jumped on my lap. Jealousy….Later, Bella was about to poop on the kitchen floor, and I hussled her butt outside.

Well, took a shower anyway. I’m dragging. I was going to watch a movie, but my Hulu account is on hold because they can’t charge my credit card. I don’t want to use another card because I need to pay for Bella’s doggie day care. Netflix is hosed too. Okay, I’ve already paid for episodes of The Golden Girls. Watched a couple of episodes.

Now I'm going to feed the hordes and crash.

tinny

The anniversary 40th round at

icons10in20 was a Monopoly game! That was so much fun! I decided - no surprise there - to make it an HPI set. Okay, two of them are actor pics of the HPI actors, but who's counting?

Teasers:

( 20 HPI icons )

Every single comment is treasured. All icons shareable! Concrit welcome. Check out my resource post for makers of textures and brushes I use.

Previous icon posts:

days_unfolding

I overslept, so I need to jam. I got everything done except the bedroom. I'll clean it myself.

Lily was playing with a ball, so I gave Oliver one. So Lily started playing with the one that I gave to Oliver. Cats!

My cleaner is here. Yay! She likes the new-to-her kitties and dog. She found a leak in the toilet, sigh. It probably needs replacing. I need to get a plumber in here also because the faucet in that bathroom is dripping. She says that she gets endorphins from cleaning. I'm the exact opposite. I'm able to walk right by a mess and not "see" it. When I'm cleaning, my back starts hurting and I'm done. She recommended Mrs. Meyers for non-toxic cleaning.

This is great though. Because it's going to rain, I'll get the bedroom and upstairs done and mop the living room floor. Then I'll need to get a carpet cleaner in for the upstairs, but that might have to wait until after my conference trip.

I’m telling Bella that the house looks nicer without shredded toilet paper and paper towels, but she stole the napkin on my lap while I was eating dinner, so I think that she’s not convinced. Now Bella is chewing a stick and getting wood splinters all over the nice clean floor. But I’d rather that she chew that instead of my stuff.

The trust said that they thought that the check would be ready on Tuesday.

Got the forms in for doggie day care.

Okay. Quince has an outfit that I want for the flight. A linen tank top, pants, and blazer in "driftwood" (ecruish). I could wear it to church too when I start going.

At the doctor’s office. I got a blood test that I had been putting off beforehand. The doctor is running really late. And I have stomach cramps. I finally saw the doctor, and she asked me why I was there, and I said, "Because you had me set up a follow-up appointment!" We did talk about my impacted ear wax, and she told me to use Debrox and come back, and they'll have a nurse irrigate my ear.

I’m completely wiped out. I’m thinking of going to bed extremely early. I need to run to the library tomorrow along with planting the bare root ferns.

I discovered where Oliver likes to nap—on one of the chairs in the kitchen. When the chair is pushed in, I can’t see him.

Got us all fed. Noodled around on the Internet. I'm going to feed the beasties and crash.

vysila

20 minute video from The Lincoln Project. Please watch and take the message to heart. Let it spur you to action.

Watch on YouTube

days_unfolding

Overslept until 8 AM. Oh well.

My Italian teacher was nice about skipping next week. (We have an in-person meeting, and I'll be driving to it during the Italian time.)

The travel Meetup people also have a Yosemite trip that I might do sometime. I never went there when I lived in California!

Oliver is playing with his beloved little plastic ball. He carries it around in his mouth!

Got my groceries.

I saved a link to a hydration pack for larger people. That might be good for wandering around Italy. (I haven't forgotten almost passing out in Florence.) And the Sardinia trip will be in August.

The car repair people called. They want me to bring the car by so that the painter can match the color of the car. I said tomorrow morning. No, I'm going to take my shower during lunch and come by in the late afternoon. Crud, on the way back, I discovered that the stereo isn't getting any power. I called the repair shop, and they'll look at it when they put the new lock on. Hell, is this ever going to get over with?

The next "official" protest being held by the group that I joined is on May 1st. Crud, that's a work day.

I'm having a tough time finding someone to let Bella out at lunchtime during my meetings next week. I'm looking into doggie day care as an alternative. Called a place and they're sending over a release form.

I'm thinking of shelling out for a Roam hardside suitcase. They're pricey, but are supposedly well made. My Hartmann case has gotten stained, which is the disadvantage of softside luggage.

Bella, Oliver, and Lily attended my shower. Lily walked around on the shower stall and then jumped in. I thought that she might want to leave, so I opened the door and Oliver walked in. Then Bella walked in. I got Bella to leave but had to remove Lily, protesting. Oliver decided to leave on his own steam. Partway through my shower, both Oliver and Lily were standing on the shower stall batting at each other. Those two are a laugh riot!

Flaming headache.

Apparently my cleaner was texting me to confirm for tomorrow and I missed the messages. I hope that we're still on. We are.

Received the ferns for my garden. They are bare roots plants, which Bella likes to dig up and play with. I'll need to plant them this weekend, rain or not, and dig deeper to hide them.

Hmm. I haven't gotten the itineraries from the Meetup travel people yet. I'm pondering going over to Paris an extra couple of days early to wander around and follow ChatGPT's tours.

I went on the BBC’s app, and they were streaming the debate in Canada, so I left it on while I was cleaning up the kitchen. It was interesting. They brought up some of the same issues being discussed in the US. They are taking Trump's wish to annex Canada seriously. The discussion about healthcare was interesting. They were saying that their system was getting more privatized, and I was wondering why. There also was a discussion about Canada's role in supporting the Ukraine now that the US is no longer doing so. The polite Canadians were talking over each other! Anyway, I learned something and also got stuff done on the house.

I got a bad case of the shakes and did something to my knee. I'm going to go to sleep and get up very early to finish tidying. I'll set a wakeup call to make sure that I'll get up.

elusivek

The Boss called me late last night: he lost something, and he thinks he left it on the plane! He's telling me almost 12 hours after the fact. It was midnight anyway, so I let it sit until this morning.

I called the airline customer service, got through the entire conversation in Mandarin. Lady said I should call another number (she gave me the number) later in the afternoon.

Did that, another big conversation in Mandarin, and booyah! They got my Boss' item. Boss wanted to ask them to courier it out, but they needed for him to show with ID to pick up the thing.

Anyway, I was riding a kind of high today because, I managed to resolve a Boss issue all in Mandarin. I'll admit I was feeling pretty cool and pretty good.

tinny

Movies

I saw Flow at the theater, the Latvian Oscar winner for animated movie. It was brilliant. I'm not sure I would have voted it higher than Wild Robot, but they're both extremely good, definitely deserving of the Oscar. The plot is a bit hard to describe, since there is no dialogue at all, and some things (both what's happening in nature and character motivations) are unclear. From what I gather, the pov cat character lives in a world that regularly sees floods, and we follow the cat through the current flood period. It meets other animals, and together they scavenge a boat to ride out the worst. There are no humans visible anywhere, but lots of artifacts, houses, and cities. The animals are shown as very individual, each with their own characteristics, but the main theme of the movie is how they bond and help each other. The music score is very important, since there is no dialogue, and except for one annoyingly tense section, I thought the music was excellent. The movie leaves a lot of room for interpretation - it makes you think, and that's always a good thing.

TV ongoing

Finally, there were new episodes of Doctor Odyssey! \o/ The first two were unusually gory, but also nicely suspenseful, which (though slightly illogical) totally worked for me. The next eps were a little more fluffy again, I just wasn't all that happy with the main themes: who's the baby daddy and surprise!alcoholism, and ep 11 (the crossover ep with one of the 911 offshoots) was the worst ep of the whole season for me. Still loving the throuple in general, and it keeps me watching. No decisions about a season 2 have been made yet.

I picked up some things again that I'd dropped in the middle, like We are Lady Parts (now on 2x04), especially loved Bisma's Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood. Awesome. I'll probably watch the rest of season 2 soon.

And Somebody Somewhere, of which I finished season 2. I thought they glossed over the conflict between Joel and Sam a bit too quickly, but I'm really loving Tricia this season.

I'm still doing the rewatch of HPI, now almost done with season 2, and my co-watcher has hopped onto the ship! \o/ In the last week of March, there was an event in Lille, SeriesMania 2025, where they showed the season five premiere, and people loved it. I'm very much looking forward to get to see it, too (airdate is May 15). I would love to find a fannish place to discuss the show, but only found a twitter community. :( I'm reading my way through the French fic on ao3 in the meantime.

TV new

In a very weird coincidence, I happened upon North of North, a very female comedy series, most of the characters and all producers are women. It's a series made by Inuk people about Inuk people, filmed on location *very far North*. It's a resounding rec. Siaja is a great character. In fact, the whole town of Ice Cove is a wonderful mix of characters, some loving, some eccentric, some traumatized. The show's humor is always on point, and even the embarrassing foot-in-mouth moments are played with so much love and charm that they don't feel squicky. It came out on Netflix on April 10, I'm planning on writing up a quick rec post for it soon.

Since I saw a lot of people talk about Severance's new season, I started the show, too. From the beginning - I'd never seen it before. The first ep was a little too slow for my liking in places - especially the dinner party omg. But apart from that, this looks very much up my alley. I like psycho horror (without jump scares) and bureaucratic dystopia in general. I stopped again when it got scary around ep 4. I'm not sure I'm up to that at the moment. It's very good, just a bit too heavy for me right now.

I started Love Scout (because I hated Filter, but needed something fluffy and Asian, or, idk why), and hated the first episode, but liked the second. I'll keep going if I need more fluff. I am once more reminded how much I don't like the directorial decision to go into slomo as soon as the leads have anything resembling a romantic moment, underscored by significant music intended to make the viewers look up from their knitting/phone/conversation with grandma so they don't miss the hug. *sigh* Apart from that, I do like the genderswapped setup with her being the workaholic boss and him being the doting father and secretary. That was almost four weeks ago already, though, and I haven't gone back to it... we'll see.

The best new thing I tried is The Pitt. Unfortunately, the camerawork makes me nauseous. That's a pity, because I really like it a lot. I went through it in 20-minute chunks, which kept the nausea at bay so far. I got about halfway through (7 of 15 episodes) in two weeks. I can see how the plot could be good (I have one guess at what's going to happen later in the day so far), although I don't like the setup of it only covering one day. There can perforce not be much character development in such a short time, at most "from flashbacks to now". And I'm usually always invested in shows for the characters and don't care as much about the plot. Despite all the gore and stress and death, it's comfort viewing for me, weirdly. :D Being Noah Wyle's age, it feels like we both started out on ER and have now come full circle, and that's just so beautiful. (I didn't dare look up interviews with him yet on why he picked the role, because everyone keeps saying that there are huge spoilers everywhere, so I'm being cautious. I did notice that he co-produced the show and wrote some of the episodes.) But it feels like coming home. <3

days_unfolding

Forgot to mention that ChatGPT found the maximum luggage dimensions for the train in Sardinia. A medium-sized suitcase would work.

I found a pet sitter who's a vet student and likes cats as well as dogs. I sent him a message. He's not available, so I'll try others.

Okay, I'm going to book the "Orient Express" trip if nothing at the meeting tomorrow dissuades me. I'm looking at a picture of Istanbul and going, "Oh wow". I also asked ChatGPT for "a bookstore tour of Paris".

I'm not taking out the garbage. I'm just going to bed and getting up early.

Got up a little after 7 AM. I got up in time for a shower, but I fell down a Facebook rabbit hole and didn’t have time for a shower.

Oh crud. They're predicting rain all weekend, and I need to get out into the garden to prepare the garden beds for seeds and plants. Beautiful day today. I had to bribe Bella to come in with a Munchie Bone. I’ll be glad when I replace the fence so I’d feel more comfortable leaving her out.

I distracted Oliver and Lily with catnip toys from the KitNipBox. Oliver, typically, wanted Lily's toy when he saw her having fun with it, so they switched toys.

I didn't shower at lunch because I wanted to take a nap. Couldn't sleep though. I'll shower before the Meetup about the trips and run an errand afterward.

I'm thinking that maybe I should get my plane travel clothes at Chico's. They have petite travel pants and some interesting blazers.

I felt a pang because I won't get email from my mom. (I've been emailing my dad about the weather and garden plans.) I have to hand it to Zara though, Of Zara, Mimi, and my mom, I would have expected Zara to pass away first. She's outlived both my mom and Mimi and is doing well. She's a tough old lady!

Received the little plastic cat ball toys. Oliver and Lily have no excuse to be bored. (I'll give Zara one too.)

5:35 PM: Load dishwasher
5:36 PM: Remove cat (Oliver) from dishwasher, sigh

Oliver was rubbing against me right before my shower. Then he was walking on top of the shower stall while I took the shower, meowing. Then he knocked two rolls of toilet paper into the toilet. One stayed dry, thank goodness, but one is toast. I told him that he and Bella are my resident goofballs.

Aargh! I scrambled to take my shower before the Meetup for the international travel, only for them to reschedule it for June. Sigh. Well, that gives me more time to clean. But I was looking forward to finding out more about the trips.

They did have the Meetup. They had just changed it to the next one before the meeting. I logged in a few minutes late, but got my questions answered. The travel agent is going to send me a detailed itinerary of the Japan and Orient Express trips. Both trips are fairly full already, so I'd need to make a decision quickly. Also, you can skip any parts of the tours that you want. They're going to St. Mark's Square in Venice, to which I've already been, so I'd want to do something else. (Murano?)

Ran an errand. Fed the critters. Did dishes and started the dishwasher. Ordered groceries. I'm going to get up early to wash sheets and towels and tidy up for the cleaner on Friday.

just_ann_now

It's my daughter's birthday! And my brother's! And my grandmother's! Quite a day. Partly sunny but breezy and cool. I have been spending lots of time in the garden the past few days, and plan to spend even more next week when, supposedly, it will be quite a bit warmer. Supposedly.

What I Just Finished Reading

Lots of fiction: Death in the Spires by K.J. Charles (

ribby, are you back yet? I got your postcard!), Girl with a Pearl Earring, by Tracy Chevalier, The People in the Trees, by Hanya Yanighara. Suggestion: If you have a Book Bingo square for "Truly Despicable Main Character", this is absolutely the book for you! I can't remember a MC as loathsome as this guy was. But I kept reading, in horrified fascination.

Lots of nonfiction: Kraken: The Curious, Exciting, and Slightly Disturbing Science of Squid, by Wendy Williams, which was pretty fascinating, The Last Days of the Dinosaurs: An Asteroid, Extinction, and the Beginning of Our World, by Riley Black, which was awesome, and Your Face Belongs to Us: A Secretive Startup's Quest to End Privacy as We Know It, by Kashmir Hill, which was

absolutely TERRIFYING and has me ready to delete my Facebook just as soon as I finish pulling off family photos. YIKES.

What I Am Currently Reading

Fourteen Days, by a whole lot of people but edited by Margaret Atwood; linked pandemic stories.

What I Am Reading Next

Kindle Unlimited made me an offer I couldn't refuse, so Fourth Wing, for a Goodreads Romantasy challenge which I've been ignoring all this time because romantasy is so not my thing. But those nonfiction books recently have been INTENSE, and I need a break!

Question of the Day: Do you have a favorite musical genre? In addition to movie soundtracks, which I adore, I also love jazz - in fact we are going to a live jazz performance tomorrow night.

severina

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elusivek

Ugh. Today was an annoying day! So back in 2023 or 2024, a new driving license scheme was implemented.

It was something like a "reciprocal acceptance of driving license", where China would recognize Macau and Hong Kong driving license, and vice versa. One would still need to go "convert" or "dub" a driving license, but there will be no need to do any sort of exam.

All the while, I was very interested in doing that. I read and I read the instructions. I saw other people doing that. Finally I decided to take the plunge and go today.

Requirements:
1. Have a Permanent Resident Status in Macau. Check
FAQ: what about for non-Chinese nationals? It is fine, as long as you have a Permanent Resident Status in Macau.

2. Need to register a Chinese phone number. Check.

3. Need to do a body and eyesight check, available to do in a "multimedia box" thingamajig. Check.

4. Recent 6-month photos. Check.

5. Pay. Check.

So I made the appointment, took some time out of the office, braved the HZM Bridge Border, walked over to the China side traffic department... IN THE SUN.

It was all for nothing. I went there, went into the machine, did the test (eye test had to be redone), got my photos taken, which looked not bad, really, and then I went to submit my documents.

Can't do it.

I don't have a Chinese name registered on my Macau Resident Card.

I kept asking, nowhere in their instructions was it said that I need a Chinese name.

"Oh, but you're in China, so you need a Chinese name."

Okay, fair enough, but still, there was absolutely no mention of the need of a Chinese name, not on the website details, not in the FAQ, not in message boards. I even asked what about the foreigners? And they replied foreigners would go to institutions to get a Chinese name registered (they get a certificate that says John Smith is 士約翰) and with that, need to re-do the body check in a hospital.

So what about the money I paid already?

You can try to call the company to get it refunded.

What the bejeeeeezus!

For once in my life I was so careful, did so much research, read all those pages, heck I read in simplified Chinese (which always gives me a headache), and still I couldn't get what I went there for.

Forget it. I don't need to be able to drive in China. I can survive on Didi (China uber).

days_unfolding

Overslept but still managed to shower. I had thought about going back to sleep for a 1/2 hour, but managed to get my butt in the shower instead. Go me :)

Things are coming together nicely. My cleaner is supposed to come on Friday, but I thought that I had an offsite meeting, but that's the following week.

I put the plants that I wanted on a credit card. I didn't get the lilacs because they were a petite variety. I have to pick them up the weekend of May 2nd. Now I’m second-guessing myself on the lilacs. The fence will be six feet, and the lilacs will be four feet. Not sure how that would work.

Oliver likes sitting at the top of the stairs to the upstairs room. That way, he can see what's going on both upstairs and downstairs. My watch cat!

Hmm. I should make arrangements to board Bella and Oliver when I'll be at a conference in May. I'm leaving on Sunday, but I think that the vet is closed on Saturday. I guess that I'll have to drop them off on Friday.

Sigh. Another frost advisory.

The university is sending almost daily updates on the impact of Trump's cuts. Sigh again. These are the Days of Sighs.

My broken-and-healed toe is hurting again. Why? Another sigh.

I should call Schwab to get the ball rolling with transferring my money. Speaking of Schwab, I found some tools that they have to learn about stock trading.

Hmm. I found a travel set that I like, but they don't have petites. Should I buy it and get it altered? It would be good for the flight to Italy. I'm itching to go shopping. Come on, trust check. They also had shorts-and-top combos that I like. Talbots has a petite set that I like.

I should set a Google Flights alert on my flights to Sardinia. I want to use my United credit for my flights to San Diego for the cruise.

Damn, I really want to go on the "Orient Express" trip that the meetup people are arranging in 2026. It goes to Paris, Venice, Vienna, Prague, Budapest, and Istanbul. I'd have to cancel the Costa Rica trip though. If I do that, I should brush up on my French. I found the price information and both it and the trip to Japan are expensive. Japan: $6810 single occupancy. Airfare: $1300 - 1900. Orient Express: $7090 single occupancy. But probably worth it. The flights to Paris and from Istanbul would add around $1000.

Ugh. Lily hasn't learned that if she sticks her claws in my leg, it hurts. I need to get her claws clipped.

Started laundry. Filed my taxes. I should get the garbage out, but damn, my toes hurt. Maybe I'll wait a few minutes to let the acetaminophen kick in. I guess that I'll post. Oh, and get new computer wallpaper for the places that I want to go.

embersofe

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gilda_elise

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