confabcon | Member Posts

It's Thursday, and it's going to be a busy day! I'm up at 4am so that I can take Jess to Sibley for their 3(ish) month post op. It's really just a formality, since they're doing great. The scars look good, and they're pretty happy with the results. Weirdly, the spots where the drains were are bigger and more prominent. But they were in for 3 weeks, so not horribly shocking.

Then, it's home from DC, and off to work for four hours. Then, I shall go forth and get my leg tattooed.

I'm nervous about the tattoo, since it's been years since I had work done, and it was all black. This'll be my first tattoo with color, especially white, which is notoriously painful. It's going on my calf, so it's not a horribly sensitive area, but still. Jess is such a rock for their sittings that I'm afraid I'll ruin their reputation. "Sure, Jess is great, but have you met their spouse?"

Tomorrow, I will go to work half a day, then we're off to the wilds of Monroeville, PA for Steel City Comic Con. I'm anxious about that, too. I've never done a con like this, so I really don't know what to expect. We'll see!

My countdown app is at some interesting numbers. 1 day to Comic Con, 29 days til we go to Philly for a weekend. Then a bit of a long stretch and 145 days to going to see the Lost Boys Musical in NYC, and then 154 days til Alaska.

Jess and I were discussing the fun of the five hour flight. It's gonna suck, even if it's non-stop. I'm not a fan of flying, but sometimes, it's the best way to get places. I've decided that I'll have my anti anxiety med, and I'll just take that and hope to nap. Fuck knows, we have to get up at ass o'clock to be there 2 hours early. Our flight leaves at 7am, so we're leaving our house at 4:30am. Which means that I'm getting up at 3am. So I should be tired, right?

And now, I shall go forth and put pants on. Everyone have an outstanding Thursday!

hannah

It wasn't exactly a bar crawl or a pub crawl since one was very much a pub and the other was very much a bar, and it was still one of each of those, starting at the pub and ending at the bar. Two drinks in two locations full of the sound of human voices. It counts as a crawl. I've done art crawls before, and this was my first crawl of this type, however you want to describe it, whatever the specific and precise nomenclature. I've never done one before and it'll be a while before I have another one like this again, in large part because there's no chance to repeat it. Because the pub's closing tonight.

I'd read about it closing a few days ago, and went there last night to check it out, indulge in fish and chips, have a cider that tasted like college and a margarita that meant business - and the cider really did taste like the ciders I had in college, sweet and soft, the bottle the same shape on my lips. It brought back a host of good memories of being afraid of new things and doing them anyway, the thrill of being someplace very grown-up and learning how to handle myself in that kind of world. It didn't quite have the smell of some of those places, but this pub was only in its present location about twelve years, and you need at least fifteen to build up that kind of aroma. If there was a scented candle of such an aroma, I'd seriously consider buying one, and while the smell wasn't there last night, the feeling was. My younger brother was on the fence about going last night, but was up for it tonight if it'd still be open. Tonight was its last night, so I called him up and off we went.

We stopped for hot dogs first. I got to the pub and saw that they were going a step beyond having the last night in that they were actively dismantling the jukebox - the jukebox that the night before had played the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Kansas, those kinds of bands - and figured that if they were taking that apart, there probably wasn't a kitchen anymore. Myself, I'd decided that I could do pub drinks two nights in a row but not pub foods, so I'd eaten before I left. But he was still waiting on dinner. So we went to a corner hot dog place a block away and he got one with onions and mustard, and another with ketchup, sauerkraut, and relish, plus a papaya drink. That's seriously what it was. Not papaya juice. The menu said "papaya drink." It tasted more like the melon the fruit is than the fruit itself usually does. We hung around as he ate, marveling in the old school accents that wandered through and ordered hot dogs well-done. Armed and ready, we made our way down the block, and down three steps, and into a place full of the human voice. The music was almost gone - sometime during our stay there, someone played "Piano Man", and if that's the last song in a place open until two AM with smokers hanging around outside, it's a suitable one. I had a cider and he had a beer, and we both did a shot of Jameson's straight up. Earlier that night, I saw a guy come in on roller blades, wearing hockey gear and bearing a stick, and during our hour and a half there, we saw people pass on well-wishes and old stories to the bartenders, thanking them for so many years and all the memories they'd helped make.

The only music that played was one song. Nothing else. Everything that I heard was the sound of the bar itself, and the sound of the human voice. Up and down the bar, in front and behind, throughout the guts of the place as the kitchen got cleaned out and the empty bottles taken away. It was a fantastic sound, with nothing getting in its way, and the rarity of it was both that there was nothing in its way and that it was overall quite happy. A place for people to meet and greet and take some of the world away for a while can have alcohol, it can have food, it can be indoors or outdoors, there's a lot of variance and possibilities, and for a moment, while I had it indoors, nothing got in its way. Just this beautiful sound that I could usually only catch a few syllables of at a time. Next to me was my brother, who spoke about his in-laws. Next to me was someone asking for a drink, or someone catching up with a friend and telling him to meet another friend who'd know who sent him, or trying to move through a narrow space to get to the bathroom without making anyone spill.

We had our drinks, and we walked out. It was a few degrees above freezing with an almost full moon high above and we were bolstered to walk seven blocks from a pub in its last hours to a bar comfortably set for the foreseeable future. Even less space, even less overhead, three steps up instead of three steps down. More music, though. A range from the same kind of music as the night before - Creedence Clearwater Revival, Cream - to songs that came out earlier this calendar year. Another beer for him, an Irish coffee for me because I'd wanted one for a while and the first place wasn't equipped to make coffee anymore. Not as many people around, but still close enough to the first place in that it wasn't too loud we couldn't hear the presence of the people around us. It wasn't an overwhelming amount of sound to hide the fact that the place wasn't very good or a lot of screens as a way to keep you from realizing you aren't having a good time. There were screens, but no sound, and none in the back. There was music, but not so loud it cut through the conversations. It was remarkably well-balanced and arranged, and we talked about travel and friends and real estate and made each other laugh until it was time for us to head on out. I might live on the same island, but he had an hour's travel at the very least, and wanted to get back home before tomorrow.

We started at one spot and ended at another. Drinks and talk at both. Two links still make up a crawl. There's other places in both our neighborhoods for us to do it again, and it'll never be quite the same. And I'm good with it having been this way once, because it was the kind of thing that even if both were staying around, wouldn't feel the same for it being something so new. It wasn't college in the bottle of cider so much as it was the memory of how it felt, and now I've made a new set of memories.

Current Mood: enthralled
Current Music: Los Angeles - Big Thief

valoise

Final Orbit, by Chris Hadfield
A continuation of his series of Apollo-era thrillers set in space & on Earth, this is a frantic journey through so many concurrent crises that the character development suffers a bit.

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman
I continue to like Osman's style - short chapters, each focused on a different character driving the investigative plot forward in a really engaging way. But this is not a stand alone book. From the first page you need to know who 10 or so characters are and what their relationships are with each other.

Legends & Lattes and Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree
I've heard good things about this fantasy series for quite a while but hadn't read them. But I was killing time in a cute little New England village, stopped in a local bookstore and picked them up on a whim. I really love the way these books build friendships and bonds between diverse species of characters.

beanside

It's Wednesday! I've made to to half way through the week! Today I have a full day, then tomorrow and Friday will be half days, so that's not too bad. Yesterday was busy, yet not too bad, which was nice. I took a good hour trying to move patients, since we had some cancellations. Most of them weren't interested in moving, sadly.

The evening wasn't that great. First of all, we were having shitty weather, and I was achy. Second, my backup glasses were delivered...but not to me. Then, I had ordered chicken and a salad, and I was very excited about the salad. Ruby Tuesday's has the best Ranch dressing of anywhere. And then the salad came, but no dressing, and the chicken was underseasoned and sparse. I was just generally annoyed and unhappy. I felt like a whiny baby, but I was actually sad about this, because I really wanted the ranch dressing.

Still, I felt really silly that it was affecting me, so I eventually snapped out of it. I watched some videos about the hotels we're staying at for the Alaska trip. The first one is the Pan Pacific in Vancouver. It was actually built above the cruise terminal, so boarding is a quick trip to a special elevator and down we go. TBF, I've stayed in 4 star hotels, but never a 5 star, so this seemed inordinately swank.

And it seemed swank in an understated way, like a more modern class. Everything is very sleek and pretty and the rooms are very well furnished. We're in the basic room, so it's not like bells and whistles, but it's still very nice. I think I'll enjoy my two nights there.

After that, I watched about the CedarBrook Lodge in Seattle. It looks lovely as well, though with a more rustic feel. This one is only for one night. It has a lounge for each building with a fridge with free ice cream. It looked very cute, and they have a shuttle to the airport so I'm good with it.

That made me feel better and got me excited about our trip. We got two rooms for that, so that my sister and brother in law could have their own room. Plus, I figured we're going to be in close proximity for most of the cruise. It would be good to have a little privacy at the beginning and end of the vacation.

Today, I need to go get my pills, and also stop at the Student Support Network with our extra coats. We ordred the wrong sizes, and didn't get around to sending them back, so we have some very nice, fairly expensive winter coats that people can use. This helps students and their families with basics and winter gear. They're open til 6 tonight, so I will run up and give them some coats, and maybe a bit of a donation as well. I'll have my check by then, so I can stop at the bank and help their mission out.

Tomorrow, we have Jess post op appt, which is first thing in the morning. Because of traffic around Washington DC, we'll have to leave at ass-o-clock, probably about 5:30. We'll be there super early, but it's the only way to be sure to miss traffic. If we leave at 6, the commute time jumps from 1hr 15minutes to at least 1.5 hours, if not longer. If we leave at 6:30, it's going to take 2 hours. Jess' appt is at 8:30, so if I don't want to do my ADHD stressing about time, we're going to leave 3 hours early and get there 1.5 hours early. There's a coffee shop we can hit to kill time.

Then, work for 4 hours, then tattoo for 3 hours. It's a busy day!

Then, up to Comic Con to meet both Beauty and the Beast. I know the picture is going to be one I hate, but that's okay. I'll have the memories. I've never done a con like this, so I'm sure I'm going to be confused, but we'll figure it out.

I will post the picture once we get home an I can scan it, so you can all see how it looks.

Oh, I got a new dress from Midnight Hour. It's seriously hot, and I'm looking forward to wearing it somewhere. Gotta find someplace fancy to wear it with my military jacket from Torrid.

Okay, time to got forth and get myself together for work. Everyone have a wonderful Wednesday!

duskpeterson

North of Border Port lies a beach. Its serene beauty belies its bloody history.

It is here that, on half a dozen occasions, the Daxions beat back the Emorian armies that were intent on conquering Daxis. Finally frustrated by all these attacks over the border, the Daxions undertook an amazing task of landscaping, bringing the Western Ocean several miles inland from where it had lain before. Once the Daxions were finished, their border with Emor had narrowed to a brief passageway between a mountain and the deep Ocean.

Guarding the border has been exceedingly simple since then. Indeed, on the one occasion on which Daxions permitted Emorian soldiers to cross the border – in 976, when Daxis agreed to allow the Emorians to travel south in order to attack the Koretian capital from its naked back – it took so long for Emor's vanguard to pass over the border, one horse at a time, that a concerned Koretian borderlander was able to alert Koretia's council in the south to the coming attack. Alas, his message was not heeded, and Koretia fell to the Emorians.

The Daxions, on the other hand, have not been attacked from the north since they persuaded the Ocean to guard them. Their true vulnerability lies now to the east, which is why Daxis attempts to maintain good relations with Koretia these days.

Because the border is so narrow, you will likely have to wait several hours to cross the border into Emor, during the busy season. You may wish to spend your time exploring the caves nearby.

[Translator's note: That narrow little border causes some trouble for travellers in Breached Boundaries.]

hannah

For some years now, I've been saying The National is my favorite band that's presently producing work. Not my favorite of all time; favorite out of all the bands working right now.

That may change. It might change quite soon. Because Voxtrot just announced their second album.

Yes, really.

A while ago they'd said that they were working on something, and today they told us when we could finally expect the album. They'd already released three songs and today they sent out a fourth, plus the knowledge there'd be seven more new songs on the album. I knew there'd be an album coming and I've only listened to one of those four, hoping it wouldn't be long before I heard the rest of them. As joyful as it was to know there was new music by the band out there for me, even sharper was knowing if I waited a bit longer, there'd be a complete work instead of individual pieces waiting for me in return. Almost three and a half years ago, they put out a compilation with two unreleased songs and it felt like a bounty of riches. Now there's ten more on their way. It's almost more than I can dream of.

The National's going to have some stiff competition.

Current Mood: giddy
Current Music: Fifteen Minutes - Voxtrot

beanside

It's Tuesday! Whoo, survived Monday! Go me! I did it to the tune of 60 calls. The team average is supposed to be 37-40, so that's a lot. By the end of it, I was wiped out. But instead, I slapped on a bra and went out to deliver some ornaments we'd gotten to a small business who's decorating a tree in Good Sam Hospital. I had gotten like five boxes of them, and we used exactly none, instead going with the snowflakes and ginormous balls from Walmart. It's an interesting mix, but I kind of love it. I have one more ornament coming courtesy of the sale in the band Ghost's shop. They had a grucifix ornament, so I grabbed that shit.

Today will hopefully be a tiny bit quieter. Probably not much, but a girl can dream. Maybe 50 calls?

The CT techs at work are making me crazy. They were emailed about a week ago, with a question about a patient's contrast allergy, and where they should be scheduled, and they haven't replied. I've got a spot held, and I'd like to get the answer so I know whether they can use it. I sent a reminder yesterday, but still nothing.

For absolutely no reason, I woke up at 4:30 this morning and was ready to get up. No clue why my body does this sometimes. It's not a huge thing, just annoying. I took my Rybelsus and managed to stay in bed for 30 minutes for it to kick in before I got up and took pills and drank coffee, as per the directions.

I'm debating dinner tonight. I was considering chicken fajitas, which could be very tasty, it's just a lot of prep, cutting up the onions and peppers, and chicken, plus making tortillas. I'll probably do it anyway. I want fajitas. And more importantly, I want homemade tortillas. I even have a press. I'll have to do it early, since I have a psych appt at 5:30. It won't take long, but it'll break up my flow. I figure chopping first, then cook some tortillas, then appointment, then cook the chicken, peppers and onions. I need to christen my chicken with some marinade this morning, so it'll be ready.

I've been slowly paying down the cruise, and I should have it paid by the end of next week. That'll be everything paid for except the pre and post cruise hotels. We're down to 156 days.

It looks like this shit is going to happen! Next milestone will be getting the dog used to his sitter. We're going to meet with her off his turf, and see how he does, then bring her into outside when we're walking him. My plan is that each time, she gets his leash and he walks with her solo. And eventually, she just walks him right in the house, and we see how that goes.

I've almost got the next grouping of cards ready to go. Hopefully the first batch has arrived/is arriving soon. I'm hoping to stop at the mailbox tomorrow when I go to get my pills.

Thursday, I have two food deliveries coming. One from a seafood place and one from the butcher. They're both relatively small orders, but our freezer will be bursting at the seams.

Okay, I suppose it's time to consider chopping some food, maybe. Then I could bag it and marinate it all day. Everyone have an awesome Tuesday!

hannah

Waiting for mail after a federal holiday is a study in impatience and adjusting expectations. There's a lot of frustration on waiting for luxuries in ways there wouldn't be if I was waiting for necessities, most of it fairly minor and petty. On the flip side, it's fairly easy to distract myself and move on for a little while, at which point there's other things needing my attention.

In other sources of anticipation, it's apparently going to snow sometime tonight and through the morning, and it'll be the first snowfall of the year. With that, the waiting is still from human hands, but much less directly than the networks and supply chains that make up the post office - though it's still got me restless over something I'm very much looking forward to.

Current Mood: restless
Current Music: nothing now

duskpeterson

ONLINE E-BOOK (html, epub, mobi, pdf, and xhtml)

Free at my website.

The Motley Crew (The Thousand Nations). When a young man named Dolan flees from the north, he faces danger on all sides. The Northern Army wants him back. The Empire of Emor wants him dead. His native homeland of Koretia may not want him at all. And his only protection is a man with motives that are mysterious and possibly deadly.

New installment:

2 | Flight Through the Forest. When you're fleeing from high danger, you have little choice in your companions.

EARLY ACCESS

My readers at Patreon and Ream get the first look at Twisted (The Thousand Nations: The Motley Crew side story). That short story will go into general release next month.

BLOG FICTION

Tempestuous Tours (Crossing Worlds: A Visitor's Guide to the Three Lands #2). A whirlwind tour of the sites in the Three Lands that are most steeped in history, culture, and the occasional pickpocket.

New installments:

Royal chapel.

Ambassador's Balcony.

Introduction to the borderland.

Border Port.

NEWS & UPCOMING FICTION

As some of you already know, I posted last month's update two days after I tripped on an uneven sidewalk, banged my head three times against a metal fence, and acquired a concussion, not to mention a broken leg. (I consider that update to be one of the greatest accomplishments of my life.)

Unfortunately, the concussion delayed my completion of "Heir" and its accompanying Blood Vow omnibus, since putting together an omnibus requires a concentrated mind I just don't have at the moment. I've moved those two projects to next year's schedule. In their place, I've juggled my release schedule in order to offer my Ream and Patreon readers a side story this month from The Motley Crew.

The timing of my next e-book installment release is a little uncertain at the moment, since my recovering head is still at the stage where, every time I edit a story, I introduce more errors than I correct. However, I hold out hope that I'll be able to get a new e-book installment out in January. In the meantime, as you can see, I'm continuing to bring out blog fiction.

Fortunately, the concussion hasn't stopping me from writing stories. Among other things, I've finished composing Motley Mayhem, the third novel in the Thousand Nations series.

( Ways to offer me a tip, financial or nonfinancial )

beanside

And, we're back to Monday. Ugh, work. I had a nice weekend, though it wasn't quite what I planned. When the sun finally rose yesterday morning, it revealed a dreary, rainy day with sleet. Add to that, Jess wasn't feeling great thanks to a uterine rebellion, which had been delayed a couple of moths by surgery. We cancelled the massages, since they were a drive down a mostly raised highway, which increased the chance of icy roads.

I felt bad for doing it last minute, but it seemed like the wisest thing to do.

Mostly I did nothing yesterday, except in one small burst of productivity. I chopped up my bacon and vegetables (leeks and onions) and put them on to sauté, bacon first, then beef, then leeks and onions. While each was cooking, I put dishes in the dishwasher and started it. Finally, the leeks and onions were done, and I added them into the rest and started my water to make broth. I have Sam's Club Beef Base, which is a thick paste that you add to boiling water to make your broth. It has a really good taste, though if you use too much, it can get salty. Thus why I used half broth, half water.

Then, it needed to simmer until the barley was tender. I did not wait til the barley was completely tender. It was smelling too good.

I am hypercritical of food I make, so believe me when I say: This was fucking good. It was warm and the beef flavor was good. The barley was a little more toothsome than expected, but it couldn't detract from the umami hit of the bacon and the buttery soft little leeks and onions and carrots.

I had two bowls and dipped my rosemary sourdough in it and ate that, too. It was really tasty. And perfect for the start of winter.

After that, I went and laid down for an hour and napped with my full warm belly.

Didn't do a whole lot in the evening. Game was cancelled, so I mostly just relaxed. It was a nice day.

The next three days are quiet, but on Thursday, we start with a trip to Sibley for Jess' postop, then I have a tattoo appointment and then Steel City Comic Con on Friday-Sunday. Hopefully a fun weekend!

For now, I'm going to go forth and get myself together. Everyone have the very best of Mondays!

ride_4ever

Thank you kindly to

small_hobbit for the postal mail!

small_hobbit is the first one to send me a card for my "milestone" birthday!

Current Mood: posty
Current Location: near the lake they call Michigan

beanside

Only 1 day left til December! Which means that there's only 18 days until I turn 53. First up, Steel City Comic Con, though. That's less than a week away.

I can't really believe that it's already December. It just seems unfathomable that the year has gone by. I've only got two months to pay off the cruise. Which we've got, but Wells Fargo only allows you to spend $5000 in a day, so I have to break the payments up into like $1000 or $2000's at a time, so that it saves the majority of the available in case of emergency. It'll be all good, just annoying. I'll have everything paid off in plenty of time.

Today, we have one thing I forgot about at 10:45am--A signature massage from the Healing Path. It's 90minutes of bliss. They use hot stones, and I always ask them to do light pressure. I know I'm a mass of knots, but having someone dive in and try to break them up is agony. I'd rather it do less for me, and not leave me bruised the next day (not usually physical bruises, but I ache. Instead, I relax and come out refreshed and happy.

Then, I think I'm going to do some cooking. I found a recipe online for Irish Strong Farmer's Soup. It sounded interesting, so I figured I'd give it a try. We have game at 5:30, so I should be done by then. I love Beef Barley Soup, so I'm excited to try it.

Then game followed swiftly by bed. We're in a part of the module that focuses on my character which is cool, a little nervewracking and a feels a bit indulgent. I know every character in this game gets the spotlight on their backstory, but it feels weird when it's you. I feel a little bad for it, but that's just me being weird. So tonight I get to work out my wizard's Daddy issues.

My sister just got up, so that's the end of my quiet time. Now we shall move into social time. I would have liked more quiet time, but that's okay. Two of the people she went to Thanksgiving dinner with came down with a stomach bug as of Saturday, so we'll see how that goes. If I get sick in time to fuck up meeting Ron Perlman and Linda Hamilton on Saturday, I'ma be peeved.

There was fuckery last night and I had to put my foot down. My sister asked if her adopted niece could come over and do a load of laundry as their machine was broken. I agreed, figuring Yoda might be cool with her, and we'd see how much work we had cut out for us.

I wasn't thrilled, but it could be useful. Then, she gets a text from the kids mother that she and her boyfriend are on their way. *record scratch*. Her and her...boyfriend. She's one thing, but I am not inviting some random dude into my house. Yoda doesn't like men. I flat out said absolutely not. And honestly it was rude to assume. We got mission aborted, and it turned out that they had forgotten that they were supposed to spend time with their grandmother, so yay for that.

Aside from that bit of stress, it was a good day. We had Arvandor first. They are currently in the final battle of this Arc, after they've already fought a banelich and two dracoliches. Now, they've found the King and his guards. The king isn't the power behind the throne, but he's a formidable opponent. Then, we had turkey sandwiches for lunch/dinner. Then another game, which is a fun little module.

Tomorrow, it will be back to work, but for now, we shall relax and prepare for massage, and then game! Everyone have an outstanding Sunday!

ride_4ever

My first post of combining hockey fandom and dog fandom was so well received that I've decided to do another one:

Watch on YouTube

Current Mood: sporty
Current Location: near the lake they call Michigan

hannah

I ended up going to the family gathering today. Sleeping for close to ten hours last night helped sway my decision considerably this morning. It went okay, and leaving when I was ready to leave - peeling off from the group and taking the subway back - was something that didn't get any pushback I could pick up on.

I'm not so much glad I went as I'm relieved I did. There were still the usual frustrations with conversation, and I'm slowly coming around to accepting that I'm probably always going to have to deal with them.

Current Mood: tired
Current Music: nothing now

serrico

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

beanside

It's Saturday, and I slept for shit. I just could not fall asleep, and when I did get to sleep, it didn't stick. I was up and down all night. Then at 5, my body insisted that it was time to get up. The cat didn't even bother getting up for food, that's how early it is. I've of course, got two games that I'm running today, so that should be fun. The first one at 12:30 should be good. The second one at 7pm could be interesting. Maybe I'll take a nap after game #1. I hate that some nights the ADHD is stronger than the sleepy pills. My body is a wonderland. Or at least a fun house that has been declared unsafe by the city.

May I just say that it was fucking cold out yesterday? Our high was in the low 40's and when we went for the night time walk with Yoda it was 33, feels like 28 degrees farenheight. On the plus side, I got to try out my new winter coat. It was very nice and warm. from my butt to my shoulders was not cold. Unfortunately, my cheeks and thighs were freezing. Yoda paid it no mind and just trotted his little self along.

I probably have a few more little presents that I need to get, but overall I'm pretty well done. I'm observing the economic blackout except from small businesses, but even if I wasn't, the black Friday sales this year are pretty blah. I'm not seeing anything that would even tempt me to buy.

I forgot to mention yesterday, we decided that instead of doing a lot more big presents, we would adopt a Navajo Elder. There's a site called Adopt a Native Elder that will match you with an Elder who needs help meeting basic needs. The inital buy in to adopt is steep ($300) but that will provide with a spring and fall food run. You can also get them firewood and grocery cards as well. It's our family gift to each other.

My sister did the adoption, and then when it comes time to order fireword or yarn for rug weaving, I can pick that up. I was scrolling BlueSky and saw the site recced by an author I follow. I looked and in the dopamine haze post turkey, I decided that I wanted to do this. I can't fix the world, but I can give someone a softer landing.

Yesterday was so boring at work. I took 22 calls, and spent a good chunk of my day working on filling some slots in. It worked out well and I was able to shuffle around some appointments to get in bigger MRIs. I get a kick out of doing that. It's like a game of Tetris, where I can look at the schedule and look at the STAT list and see what we have the potential to accommodate. It worked out well. I got 4 people off the list, so that's not nothing.

We ordered food, and I had osso bucco for the first time, and good lord it was tasty. I will definitely get that again. For dessert, I made roasted pears with blue cheese and honey. Very tasty, and not terribly hard to make. I'm not mad at it at all.

I have things to do today. I've gotta get myself together at a reasonable time, then head out to the nursery and to grab lunch before game. Right now, I just kind of want to sit here and let my ass become one with the couch.

Actually, it looks like the nursery is open on Sundays, too. So I may go tomorrow and shop and grab lunch and achieve a meld with the cushions until game.

Okay, off to do some prep work for the 12:30 game! Everyone have an excellent Saturday!

beanside

It's Friday and I have to work. Boo. I really would like the day off, but that isn't going to happen. Apparently today we're going to do some trainings. We're going to be getting a new, hopefully better phone system that'll crap out less often, so we're going to get traininigs on that.

Our Epic update just went life, and I hate it. I don't know if I mentioned it. They completely changed the flow for our calls, and it's annoying as all fuck. It's not unusable, but it's pretty counter intuitive and doesn't seem to make any great changes. *shrug*. I have no idea what they were thinking. Maybe it's a good flow for the rest of the non radiology teams, but it sucks for us. And, they were up our boss's ass about our calls being too long, and this is just going to make them longer. That was the reason we couldn't have more people--because the workers we have aren't meeting the bullshit metrics that they want us to.

Thanksgiving was good. I started cooking at 10am, making stuffing and then getting out the bird. I'm not sure it was realy 12-15lbs. It seemed rather big. Might just get a breast next time, or a smaller bird. When it came out, it looked amazing. Just perfectly browned and sitting on it's big rack.

In practice, it was a bit dry, and needed more salt, but overall had a nice flavor. Between the three of us, we managed to eat about 3/4 of one side of the breast. The custards had absorbed some more flavor, though the topoing was a bit gummy from the fridge. The gravy and side dishes were very good though.

Had that with a little bit of Mt Hope Winery's Niagra wine, which is my favorite. When we go up, we will need to get some more. I feel like I should take a shopping cartand just start stacking booze. I know I want more coconut rum cream, that shit was awesome. I used up all the spiced rum mini I had, so I need more of that. I'm hoping for eggnog, and maybe I'll get a good whiskey. Then, some wine and cider and maybe a growler of Irish Red. I used to like Killian's Red, so we'll see.

This weekend, we mostly have games. None tonight, but two tomorrow and one on Sunday. Next week, I work 8 hours Mon-Wednesday. Thurs I work four hours in the afternoon, since Jess has a post op in Sibley. Then I go get a tattoo for 3 hours. And Friday 4 hours in the morning. Then, I will be free for the weekend and a trip to Pittsburgh for Steel City Comic Con.

I think tomorrow, we also may make another trip to the nursery and see what they have in the way of wreaths. Last week, they only had 2 wreaths out. I'm hoping by waiting a week, they'll be a bit more up to speed. We go to a small nursery where an old woman makes all of their wreaths, so I'm hoping that gives her enough time.

Okay, time to get ready for work. Everyone have a stellar Friday!

beanside

It's Thursday! And that means one thing! Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Americans. It might be hard to find something you're grateful for in this shitshow of a year, but one thing I'm grateful for: We're still here. We persist and we snatch bits of joy and pleasure, even in the onslaught of political bullshit.

This year, I'm grateful for a lot of things. Despite the aforementioned political bullshit, it's been a pretty good year for us. Most of the year, we spent relearning how to live without Dad taking up all our time and energy. I miss him, but I'm also grateful he's gone. The last two years weren't living for any of us. I'm also grateful that both his and Jess' father's death have given us a nest egg in case of emergencies. I was able to pay off a good chunk of my car, so my payments are paid until 2027. I'm going to pay off more as well, and hopefully be paid off by the beginning of February. I'm grateful that we're able to go out and do things. I'm grateful that Jess was able to get their top surgery this year, and that thanks to my Hopkins insurance, and the Hopkins Medical system, everything went smooth as silk. Other people have had their surgery take years to get done, and Jess' was done in about 6 months from saying "Hey, I think I want this" to actual surgery. There were some hoops to jump through, but even those went smoothly. And thanks to an excellent surgeon, their recovery was quick and mostly painless and had nice results.

So, today I'm going to cook a shit-ton of food, including the fresh turkey and stuffing and gravy, and bake some Brussel sprouts and corn from Sam's Club, and we will have a nice meal, followed by pumpkin custard. And I'm going to be grateful that I get to do that in a warm, safe apartment with an actual oven. And the rest of the day, I'm going to sit in front of our tree and watch the lights twinkle and relax.

And tomorrow, I'm going to be grateful to have a good job that I enjoy with people who I like working with.

Then Saturday, I'm going to be grateful for my D&D groups, who have gotten me through the last 5 years.

And I'm going to (hopefully) get more presents to wrap in the mail.

All of which is to say, I wish you and yours the best on this holiday!

Okay, time to go forth and maybe poke at the turkey. Everyone have an amazing Thursday!

hannah

It's my dad's birthday this Friday. It's my family's plan to have a small get-together about it. It's been my family's plan to do it in Brooklyn with bagels and cake. It's the assumption I'll make the cake. I'm good with making the cake. I'm happy with making the cake. I'm unhappy with being told I'd make the cake without being told I was invited to the get-together. That the invitation was implicit was lost on me. Nobody told me I was invited until I was told there was an expectation I'd provide a cake.

I'm going on a hike with my parents tomorrow, and having dinner alone with them on Friday. I'm presently on the fence about a Saturday get together on the grounds that I really don't know how I'll feel about spending three consecutive days with them. I know if I don't tell them that with those specific words, in more or less that specific way, there won't be any effect on their behavior. I know that and I'm also wondering about staying quiet and observing what they say and how they act in regards to my presence as a litmus test they're not aware of. I'm fairly certain that'd backfire just as much as telling them I want to feel comfortable around them. I might go with the "not saying anything until I have no choice" strategy, or I might go with the "talk about it with someone on Friday to get my feelings out" strategy. I worry I'll have to buy more bourbon and rum in any case.

Current Mood: distressed
Current Music: Don't Swallow the Cap - The National

ride_4ever

My local AHL team -- the Chicago Wolves -- has again this year as previously provided and served a Thanksgiving meal of turkey and other treats to the shelter dogs of Border Tails Rescue in Northbrook, Illinois, a no-kill shelter with a spay-and-neuter program that specializes in rescuing and rehoming stray dogs from Mexico (they also take in owner surrenders from Chicagoland).

Harleigh Garcia, founder of Border Tails Rescue, said “We are so excited to have the Wolves again this year to help us celebrate the holidays and bring something special to the dogs. It’s not ideal for these dogs to be spending their holidays in the shelter. We’d love for them to all find homes, but that’s just not possible right now, so it’s nice to bring them a little something special, and we love partnering with the Wolves.”

To learn more about Border Tails Rescue, click here. They have many volunteer opportunities and especially are looking for tourists returning from Mexico who are willing to be "flight volunteers" at no cost to themselves for escorting Mexican stray dogs to the U.S.

The picture below is Chicago Wolves Hockey players Nikita Pavlychev, Braden Doyle, Blake Biondi, Skyler Brind’Amour, Bryce Montgomery and Yanick Turcotte with some of the dogs they treated to this special Thanksgiving meal.

Chicago Wolves Hockey Team serves Thanksgiving Dinner to the dogs at Border Tails Rescue