vital functions
Oct. 18th, 2020 11:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kaberettReading. I have made very little progress with The Ladies of Grace Adieu, and I think it is probably getting to about time for me to decide that I don't have sufficient executive function to cope with the terrible ebook formatting. This is... frustrating, because I'd rather read digitally than in dead tree (for a variety of reasons) and yet I am mysteriously reluctant to purchase my own copy without evidence that the terrible ebook formatting is somehow specific to the library copy, so, augh. Maybe I try again at this in future, now that I have established my interest in it more thoroughly.
Writing. Thesis chapters 5 & 6 document is now down to 6.7k words, of which some are notes-to-self. Trying not to panic about it being too short. Supervisors get to tell me how much to put back in or where to expand, I suppose. (It's getting sent off to them shortly -- just the second set of conclusions to bash into shape, now, plus sorting out the accompanying figures...)
Listening. TMA 183, about which I had needs must scream.
Playing. Slightly to my surprise, we have in fact launched straight in to Riven, and I can tell I'm going to need to Draw Maps. The updated graphics are a very pleasant surprise; in Myst I was already admiring how well they'd done the granite, and now I get succulents and cacti as well! In addition to glorious carefully-illustrated rockfaces. Frustratingly, we're finding this much heavier going in terms of working out what's going on, and have taken recourse to the Universal Hints System on multiple occasions.
Horn is mostly currently managing "one note" rather than any lengthier practice, which I'm a little sad about but, hey, thesis swamp.
PoGo: a decent shiny Charmander from community day; a 100% IVs evil sheep, which, what even am I supposed to do with that; and, new species hatched from a Strange Egg: Sandile!
Cooking. I am most pleased with the roast dinners feat. allotment carrots and beetroot (and, on one occasion, beans and potatoes). Elsewise, lots of puttanesca (quick, easy, doesn't involve brain). I am grudgingly coming to accept that linseeds might not be bad in bread, actually. Oh, and also an excellent round of beet-leaf with shallot and garlic and lemon and pepper and butter. On toast. (Thus far I am less convinced by the carrot leaves.)
Growing. Harvested carrots, beetroot, another 1kg of tomatoes (24.7...), squash, tiny potatoes. Mysteriously, despite being absolutely certain I also sowed root parsley and parsnips, every single Umbellifera in the bed appears to be... purple carrots.
Have successfully (via lots of support from A) given the squash another milk-spray treatment for the powdery mildew.
None of the onion or spinach seed I sowed appears to be doing much of anything yet, but hey, fingers crossed for easy food in due course and the fullness of time.
The remaining outdoor tomatoes really need taking down and I really need to weed but, well, thesis. Such that I have not yet managed to sharpen my secateurs despite having had them at home for this express purpose for the past several weeks. We'll see how we go.
Observing. THE BAT, which is now appearing at around 6pm, which is most inconsiderate of it, really, or at least of sunset if not the bat itself. The garden fox has been having fun with the bags people have been leaving adjacent to rather than in the communal bins. The weather getting cooler again means that the coal tits are getting more interested in the bird feeders; this resulted in me being very distracted during my therapy session on Friday at the point a whole flock of them repeatedly attempted to mob the squirrel into fucking off, and similarly repeatedly chickened out. I almost interrupted therapy to get up and chase the sqrl off for them, but decided I'd rather at least try to keep my focus on the thing I was theoretically doing...
Writing. Thesis chapters 5 & 6 document is now down to 6.7k words, of which some are notes-to-self. Trying not to panic about it being too short. Supervisors get to tell me how much to put back in or where to expand, I suppose. (It's getting sent off to them shortly -- just the second set of conclusions to bash into shape, now, plus sorting out the accompanying figures...)
Listening. TMA 183, about which I had needs must scream.
Playing. Slightly to my surprise, we have in fact launched straight in to Riven, and I can tell I'm going to need to Draw Maps. The updated graphics are a very pleasant surprise; in Myst I was already admiring how well they'd done the granite, and now I get succulents and cacti as well! In addition to glorious carefully-illustrated rockfaces. Frustratingly, we're finding this much heavier going in terms of working out what's going on, and have taken recourse to the Universal Hints System on multiple occasions.
Horn is mostly currently managing "one note" rather than any lengthier practice, which I'm a little sad about but, hey, thesis swamp.
PoGo: a decent shiny Charmander from community day; a 100% IVs evil sheep, which, what even am I supposed to do with that; and, new species hatched from a Strange Egg: Sandile!
Cooking. I am most pleased with the roast dinners feat. allotment carrots and beetroot (and, on one occasion, beans and potatoes). Elsewise, lots of puttanesca (quick, easy, doesn't involve brain). I am grudgingly coming to accept that linseeds might not be bad in bread, actually. Oh, and also an excellent round of beet-leaf with shallot and garlic and lemon and pepper and butter. On toast. (Thus far I am less convinced by the carrot leaves.)
Growing. Harvested carrots, beetroot, another 1kg of tomatoes (24.7...), squash, tiny potatoes. Mysteriously, despite being absolutely certain I also sowed root parsley and parsnips, every single Umbellifera in the bed appears to be... purple carrots.
Have successfully (via lots of support from A) given the squash another milk-spray treatment for the powdery mildew.
None of the onion or spinach seed I sowed appears to be doing much of anything yet, but hey, fingers crossed for easy food in due course and the fullness of time.
The remaining outdoor tomatoes really need taking down and I really need to weed but, well, thesis. Such that I have not yet managed to sharpen my secateurs despite having had them at home for this express purpose for the past several weeks. We'll see how we go.
Observing. THE BAT, which is now appearing at around 6pm, which is most inconsiderate of it, really, or at least of sunset if not the bat itself. The garden fox has been having fun with the bags people have been leaving adjacent to rather than in the communal bins. The weather getting cooler again means that the coal tits are getting more interested in the bird feeders; this resulted in me being very distracted during my therapy session on Friday at the point a whole flock of them repeatedly attempted to mob the squirrel into fucking off, and similarly repeatedly chickened out. I almost interrupted therapy to get up and chase the sqrl off for them, but decided I'd rather at least try to keep my focus on the thing I was theoretically doing...
(no subject)
Date: 2020-10-18 10:46 pm (UTC)I loved Riven. The graphics were so good.
(no subject)
Date: 2020-10-19 02:47 am (UTC)Luck with swamp!
BAP.
(no subject)
Date: 2020-10-19 03:08 am (UTC)*stares aghast at the inconvenience of geography intruding on this scheme*
I do seem to recall that leaf parsley is said to be hard to germinate (though I have no idea about parsnips)?
I should like to hear how the milk treatment works for the powdery mildew; I think that might be what keeps taking out our curcurbits.
A lot of my therapy sessions during COVID have been in a parked car (privacy + phone signal) and one day this summer I actually interrupted myself for a couple minutes to remove an errant something--I think a spider or wasp--that had ventured in through the window(!)
As vass said, luck with swamp!
(no subject)
Date: 2020-10-19 12:56 pm (UTC)(Some recipes suggest blanching them, which might help, but I could never be bothered to try)
Also, sounds like you're steaming ahead with thesis! *cheerleads excitedly*
(no subject)
Date: 2020-10-21 12:56 am (UTC)