home and energy thoughts

Mar. 19th, 2026 07:49 pm
tielan: (AVG - maria 3)
[personal profile] tielan
What if I don't want to run the electricity in my household like a standard Australian household?
 
thinky thoughts )

Thursday 19/03/2026

Mar. 19th, 2026 09:45 am
dark_kana: (3_good_things_a_day official icon)
[personal profile] dark_kana posting in [community profile] 3_good_things_a_day

1) Lovely sunshine, so going for a walk during lunch break

2) Good talks with colleagues at the office

3) Going out with hubby this evening :-)

Finale time

Mar. 19th, 2026 07:46 am
shallowness: Kira in civvies looking straight ahead (Default)
[personal profile] shallowness
The Night Manager - 2.6

Read more... )

puka~ puka~

NSFW Mar. 19th, 2026 02:57 am
dragonofeternal: (enstars→ chiakana Heroes!!!)
[personal profile] dragonofeternal
( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )
[syndicated profile] languagelog_feed

Posted by Victor Mair

In part 1 of this post, "The (ir)reality of the MingKwai typewriter" (10/17/25) and many preceding, related posts (see "Selected readings" and the links to which they lead), we saw what a boondoggle and fiasco the Chinese typewriter (especially Lin Yutang's MingKwai) was.  Yet people are still glorifying and extolling the clumsy, clunky, cumbersome Chinese typewriter as though it were leading the IT revolution (when the reality is quite the contrary).  So much hype and sensationalism about the retrograde Chinese typewriter!

The following bilibili video, although in Chinese, will show how complicated and expensive to replicate such a device is:

Remarks by Xinyi Ye:

I just saw this behind-the-scenes video of HTX Studio's Chinese typewriter production. In another interview video, HTX said their studio was experiencing a financial deficit last year [when they made the video attempting to replicate Lin Yutang's MingKwai]. Probably not as bad as what happened to Lin Yutang [who went bankrupt building the MingKwai], but again shows how much investment goes into doing something like this!

It behooves all those who preach the gospel of the MingKwai and related Chinese typewriters to read and take to heart the scholarly critiques in the bibliography below.

 

Selected readings

Too much fun!

Mar. 18th, 2026 11:02 pm
thewayne: (Default)
[personal profile] thewayne
My final trip to Phoenix to finish up my brother's affairs.
Read more... )

Community Thursdays

Mar. 19th, 2026 12:13 am
ysabetwordsmith: A blue sheep holding a quill dreams of Dreamwidth (Dreamsheep)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This year I'm doing Community Thursdays. Some of my activity will involve maintaining communities I run, and my favorites. Some will involve checking my list of subscriptions and posting in lower-traffic ones. Today I have interacted with the following communities...

* Posted "Tutorials" on [community profile] getting_started.

* Posted "Gaming" on [community profile] girlgamers.

* Posted "Ostara" on [community profile] goddessfolk.

Gaming

Mar. 19th, 2026 12:19 am
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith posting in [community profile] girlgamers
I thought it would be fun to look for games designed by women.


20 Awesome Video Games Made by Women -- Punished Backlog

Games Designed by Women -- American Library Association

Good Games Designed by Women -- Board Game Geek

Tabletop Tuesday: RPGs Designed by Women -- Pop Culture Uncovered
siderea: (Default)
[personal profile] siderea
Just hit play.

(All about the sound, but visuals also nice.)

2026 Mar 18: Benn Jordan [BennJordan YT]: "I'm here to disrupt the finance synthesizer scene."

Daily Happiness

Mar. 18th, 2026 09:43 pm
torachan: karkat from homestuck looking bored (karkat bored)
[personal profile] torachan
1. I've been making the rounds to all the SoCal stores to discuss our upcoming system transition and get a better feel for some of the stores' current processes, particularly for their accounting department, and today I went down to San Diego. Long day of driving, which sucks, but it was nice to see the store again after a long while, and I did make a lot of progress on my current audiobook!

2. Tomorrow I have a lot of meetings, but the first one isn't until 11, so I'm going to take my time in the morning to make up for how long today felt (I didn't even get home until after seven, and I left around 8:30 this morning).

3. Carla and I are not fans of the warm weather, but the cats sure love having the front windows open.

Grok, explain Butlerian Jihad [ai]

Mar. 19th, 2026 12:36 am
siderea: (Default)
[personal profile] siderea
Screenshot of two comments on X.  One says, "Reading Dune.  Frank Herbert was cooking." and shows a section of a photo of a book page reading, "'Once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free.  But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.' '"Thou shalt not make a machine in the likeness of a man's mind,"' Paul quoted."  Below that someone replied, paging Grok, X's resident AI, "please explain this post and the quote in in, what should I understand about it?"

Debate is raging on BSky if this is deliberate wit or accidental idiocy.

(h/t user mlyp.bsky.social)
james_davis_nicoll: (Default)
[personal profile] james_davis_nicoll
Would it be possible to "Wrongfully Attributed" added to my entry?

Read-in-Progress Wednesday

Mar. 19th, 2026 11:34 am
geraineon: (Default)
[personal profile] geraineon posting in [community profile] cnovels
This is your weekly read-in-progress post

For spoilers:

<details><summary>insert summary</summary>Your spoilers goes here</details>

<b>Highlight for spoilers!*</b><span style="background-color: #FFFFFF; color: #FFFFFF">Your spoilers goes here.</span>*

wednesday books have families

Mar. 18th, 2026 08:47 pm
landofnowhere: (Default)
[personal profile] landofnowhere
Chroniques du Pays des Mères, Élisabeth Vonarburg. Nearing the end; only two more weeks to go. This week we get to see a bit more of the world, learn a bit more about the worldbuilding (I am holding myself back from making demographic spreadsheets), and hang out with the Sexy Twins. The end of this installment teases a new historical discovery, which I look forward to reading about next week!

Success, Una Silberrad, 1912. Michael Annarly is a brilliant engineer who has no interest in office politics. His cousin Nan Barminster is a nondescript young woman who works for her father, an antique furniture dealer, and is quietly brilliant in her own way. After an incident completely derails Michael's promising career, Nan takes him under her wing. Previously having read three Una Silberrads, I had a good sense of how she writes relationships between men and women, even though the arcs have been different in each book I've read, which helped me figure out where this was going. spoilers )

Other sociological notes: Michael works in weapons manufacture, and sells his designs to multiple countries, and only one character (whose progressive politics is portrayed as a charming character quirk) even bats an eyelid about the ethics of profiting off war. There are also some very brief mentions of the Barminsters doing business with Jews, but while the language is slightly jarring it gives a sense of them as serious businessmen.
tavina: (Default)
[personal profile] tavina posting in [community profile] pinchhits
Minimum: 5000 words, or a comic that is 5 pages or 20 panels long, or a podfic 5000 words or greater
Due: March 29th at 10pm EDT

PH 22 - NoPixel (Web Series), Video Blogging RPF, 文豪ストレイドッグス | Bungou Stray Dogs

PH 28 - DCU (Comics), Gravity Falls, Stranger Things (TV 2016)

Claim via emailing TavinaFanfiction@gmail.com or by commenting at https://au5k.dreamwidth.org/15169.html
Thank you for considering our pinch hits!
ranalore: JC and WWX in the courtyard of Lotus Pier (the untamed twin prides)
[personal profile] ranalore posting in [community profile] fancake
Fandom: 陈情令 | The Untamed
Pairings/Characters: Jiang Cheng & Wei Wuxian & Jiang Yanli, Jiang Cheng/Nie Huaisang (background), Wei Wuxian/Lan Wangji (background), Lan Xichen, Jin Zixuan, Meng Yao, Wen Zhuliu
Rating: R for Graphic Depictions of Violence and Major Character Death
Length: 133,987 words
Creator Link: [archiveofourown.org profile] meyari
Themes: Siblings, Time Travel Fix-It, Women Being Awesome, Trauma & Recovery

Summary: As the Jianghu collapses around Jiang Cheng's ears, his borrowed core begins to fail. Wei Wuxian has one final trick up his sleeve, though the only person who can use it is the one person who has no core of his own: Jiang Cheng. Time travel may be impossible for everyone else, but Jiang Cheng has one slender, delicate chance to save the entire world. Of course he has to take it no matter what the cost might be.

Reccer's Notes: As soon as I saw this month's theme, I thought of this story. While time travel fix-its and core reveal fix-its are both common in the fandom, this story handles both tropes in ways I haven't seen any other story do. It also features amazing original characters, including several badass women of the Meishan Yu sect, and gives Jiang Yanli one of the best storylines I've ever seen. The rating is because there's still a war, and some characters still die, but it's a far different war, and they are far different deaths.

I do feel like I have to provide a caveat that this could use a serious line edit, by which I mean there is a grammatical or spelling error in nearly every sentence. It really says something that, despite this, I couldn't put the story down, and devoured all 100K+ words of it in the space of two nights.

Fanwork Links: Moments of Revelation (please note that this is archive-locked to AO3-registered users)

(no subject)

Mar. 18th, 2026 09:47 pm
ashelterofpages: (stock0038)
[personal profile] ashelterofpages
So, I fell really behind on Dreamwidth things. I don't know hat all happened exactly. I think part of it was being in and out of two different houses for a while. I'm settled back in my normal living situation though, so hopefully I'll be better again.

I did get the start of my tattoo done and it went really well. I love it so much, and even though my family doesn't like it much, it still makes me happy to see that I actually did this thing I've wanted to do for so many years.

~*~

As per usual, there's been family drama going on. The problem is that this time it was involving my own living situation, which didn't feel great. I thiiiink it's all settled now (we were going to maybe have someone move in with us, but we literally have nowhere to put him and he's kind of a terrible person to live with anyway). I'm not entirely sure on that because there's a factor that could change things very quickly, but I'm hoping things are done for now.

~*~

I've been getting dental work done this month, and while I'm not having a great time with it, I'm glad it's moving along.Tomorrow I'm getting my wisdom teeth taken out, which does not excite me even a little, and then at the beginning of April, I'm getting a filling put in.But thatshould be all I need done until my next cleaning, so that's exciting at least.

I also have an eye appointment on the 27th, but hopefully nothing will be exciting there. I always get nervous for eye stuff though because of my history (aka, my eyes are a disaster.).

~*~

To help myself stay sane and do some bonding with friends, I've started a playthrough of Dragon Age: Veilguard with one of my partner's other partners. We've hung out before, but never did something just the two of us, and they're a big Dragon Age fan and was really excited to get to share the game with me.
reat time and they're really good at reading everything for me, letting me make choices unless I tell them to, and giving me enough description that I can usually see what's going on in the game. I didn't know how this was going to go, but I'm having a great time, and I think they are too.

It's going really well! I'm having a g
I'm also watching The Exorcist TV show with a friend I'm going to visit in June. We're both writers and big horror fans, and have watched stuff together before. I have a running list of things we keep bringing up to stream together, and I think we're going to bounce between writing stuff and streaming stuff. It's exciting!

I have also got my best friend playing Bongo Cat with me and this is such a silly little game but I find it so fucking delightful. I also think it's helped me swing into something like a routine again, which is great!
highadrenalinemod: Spongebob and Patrick Star run around yelling and waving their arms (Default)
[personal profile] highadrenalinemod posting in [community profile] pinchhits
Due: March 29th, 10pm EDT
Minimum: 10k or 10 page/25 panel comic
To claim, please comment on the pinch hit post: Here

PH 1 - [SAFETY] Visionaries: Knights of the Magical Light, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Crossover Fandom, Chalion Saga - Lois McMaster Bujold, Jem and the Holograms (Cartoon), Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (TV)

PH 2 - Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes (Granada TV 1984), Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened (Video Game), [SAFETY] A Study in Emerald - Neil Gaiman, [SAFETY] Art in the Blood - Brian Stableford, Battlestar Galactica (2003), Dark Shadows (1966)

PH 6 - [SAFETY] Bullet Train (2022), [SAFETY] Kraven the Hunter (2024), The Fall Guy (2024), Gladiator (Movies - Scott)

PH 11 - Nantucket Trilogy - S.M. Stirling, Crossover Fandom, Crossover Fandom, [SAFETY] 长公主在上 | Zhǎng Gōng Zhǔ Zài Shàng (Web Series), Grimm (TV), 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018), 绅探 | Detective L (TV)

PH 12 - Crossover Fandom, 崩坏:星穹铁道 | Honkai: Star Rail (Video Game), 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game), [SAFETY] Original Work, [SAFETY] 恋をするつもりはなかった | Koi wo Suru Tsumori wa Nakatta | I Didn't Mean to Fall in Love (Manga), 网恋翻车指南 - 酱子贝 | Guide on How to Fail at Online Dating - Jiàng Zǐ Bèi, The Handsome Salesman At Work Is An Ideal Master, ダンジョン飯 | Dungeon Meshi | Delicious in Dungeon

PH 14 - [SAFETY] When the Angels Left The Old Country - Sacha Lamb, The Fairyland Series - Catherynne M. Valente, [SAFETY] Wind Will Rove - Sarah Pinsker, [SAFETY] Into the Woods - Sondheim/Lapine, [SAFETY] The Forbidden Book - Sacha Lamb

PH 15 - 내가 키운 S급들 - 근서 | S-Classes that I Raised - Geunseo, 전지적 독자 시점 - 싱숑 | Omniscient Reader - Sing-Shong, 괴담에 떨어져도 출근을 해야 하는구나 - 백덕수 | Even If I Fall Into a Ghost Story I Still Have to Go to Work - Baek Deoksoo, 내가 키운 S급들 | The S-Classes That I Raised (Webcomic), [SAFETY] Original Work, 人渣反派自救系统 - 墨香铜臭 | The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer, 恋与深空 | Love and Deepspace (Video Game), Crossover Fandom, Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening

PH 16 - Hazbin Hotel (Cartoon), Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Manga), [SAFETY] BCV: Battle Construction Vehicles (Video Game)

PH 18 - [SAFETY] Point Break (1991), [SAFETY] The Collector Series (Movies), Kingdom Come: Deliverance (Video Games), [SAFETY] A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (TV)

Thank you for considering our pinch hits!
highadrenalinemod: Spongebob and Patrick Star run around yelling and waving their arms (Default)
[personal profile] highadrenalinemod posting in [community profile] highadrenalineexchange
These pinch hits are due Sunday 29 March at 9:59 PM EST. Claim a pinch hit by commenting on this post with your AO3 handle and the AO3 handle of the pinch hit. All comments are screened.

Any request can be filled with minimum 10,000 words of fic. If the person opted in to receiving a comic for a given request, that request can also be filled with a comic of minimum 10 pages/minimum 25 panels. Read the full rules here.

You can only have a total of two active assignments/pinch hits at a time, you absolute maniacs. Finish one of those before grabbing another.

To make any request look prettier, drop the person's username into the Auto AO3 App. To learn more about a fandom that looks interesting and cool, see the fandom promos.

PH 1 - [SAFETY] Visionaries: Knights of the Magical Light, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Crossover Fandom, Chalion Saga - Lois McMaster Bujold, Jem and the Holograms (Cartoon), Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (TV) )


PH 2 - Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes (Granada TV 1984), Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened (Video Game), [SAFETY] A Study in Emerald - Neil Gaiman, [SAFETY] Art in the Blood - Brian Stableford, Battlestar Galactica (2003), Dark Shadows (1966) )


PH 3 - NoPixel (Web Series), Video Blogging RPF, 仙王的日常生活 | The Daily Life of the Immortal King (Cartoon), [SAFETY] 可愛いだけじゃない式守さん | Kawaii dake ja Nai Shikimori-san | Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie, [SAFETY] ALICE - Erin LeCount (Music Video), 文豪ストレイドッグス | Bungou Stray Dogs )


PH 6 - [SAFETY] Bullet Train (2022), [SAFETY] Kraven the Hunter (2024), The Fall Guy (2024), Gladiator (Movies - Scott) )


PH 11 - Nantucket Trilogy - S.M. Stirling, Crossover Fandom, Crossover Fandom, [SAFETY] 长公主在上 | Zhǎng Gōng Zhǔ Zài Shàng (Web Series), Grimm (TV), 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018), 绅探 | Detective L (TV) )


PH 12 - Crossover Fandom, 崩坏:星穹铁道 | Honkai: Star Rail (Video Game), 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game), [SAFETY] Original Work, [SAFETY] 恋をするつもりはなかった | Koi wo Suru Tsumori wa Nakatta | I Didn't Mean to Fall in Love (Manga), 网恋翻车指南 - 酱子贝 | Guide on How to Fail at Online Dating - Jiàng Zǐ Bèi, The Handsome Salesman At Work Is An Ideal Master, ダンジョン飯 | Dungeon Meshi | Delicious in Dungeon )


PH 14 - [SAFETY] When the Angels Left The Old Country - Sacha Lamb, The Fairyland Series - Catherynne M. Valente, [SAFETY] Wind Will Rove - Sarah Pinsker, [SAFETY] Into the Woods - Sondheim/Lapine, [SAFETY] The Forbidden Book - Sacha Lamb )


PH 15 - 내가 키운 S급들 - 근서 | S-Classes that I Raised - Geunseo, 전지적 독자 시점 - 싱숑 | Omniscient Reader - Sing-Shong, 괴담에 떨어져도 출근을 해야 하는구나 - 백덕수 | Even If I Fall Into a Ghost Story I Still Have to Go to Work - Baek Deoksoo, 내가 키운 S급들 | The S-Classes That I Raised (Webcomic), [SAFETY] Original Work, 人渣反派自救系统 - 墨香铜臭 | The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer, 恋与深空 | Love and Deepspace (Video Game), Crossover Fandom, Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening )


PH 16 - Hazbin Hotel (Cartoon), Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Manga), [SAFETY] BCV: Battle Construction Vehicles (Video Game) )


PH 18 - [SAFETY] Point Break (1991), [SAFETY] The Collector Series (Movies), Kingdom Come: Deliverance (Video Games), [SAFETY] A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (TV) )

Request: High-protein snacks

Mar. 18th, 2026 06:09 pm
sonia: Quilted wall-hanging (Default)
[personal profile] sonia posting in [community profile] gluten_free
I would like to have more high-protein snacks on hand, and the usual suggestions don't work for my digestive system (nuts, soy, dairy, beans). Does anyone have recipes to recommend? I'm thinking something like mini-frittatas made in muffin cups. Some kind of meatballs would be an option, but I'd prefer something that was less fuss to make. Thanks!

I did a quick search before posting and found this recipe: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/231480/muffin-pan-frittatas/ Looks reasonable, although I wouldn't put in milk or cheese. At least it gives me proportions and baking time.
goodbyebird: SCC: Cameron is dancing ballet. (SCC Cameron ghost in the machine)
[personal profile] goodbyebird
+ London, San Francisco and Beijing achieve ‘remarkable reductions’ in air pollution.
“This report shows that cities can achieve what was once thought impossible: cutting toxic air pollution by 20-45% in a little over a decade,” said Cecilia Vaca Jones, executive director of Breathe Cities, one of the organisations behind the report. “This isn’t just happening in one corner of the world; from Warsaw to Bangkok, cities are proving that we have the tools to solve this crisis right now.”

+ Fifty years after New Zealand stopped whaling, humpback population showing signs of recovery.

+ Two pairs of beavers released in Cornwall.
Beavers became extinct from the wild in England more than 400 years ago due to hunting for their pelts, meat and glands.
The charity said beavers were increasingly recognised as one of nature's most important keystone species - animals whose presence shapes entire ecosystems.


+ The river otter’s remarkable comeback.

+ European Parliament Votes Overwhelmingly For "The Full Recognition Of Trans Women As Women".
Significantly, the vote gathered support not only from left-leaning groups but also from the majority of the European People's Party, the largest and most powerful center-right bloc in the European Parliament. The center-right support drew sharp criticism from the far right: the Patriots for Europe group, which includes Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's Fidesz and French far-right leader Marine Le Pen's National Rally, voted against the resolution and denounced its exclusion from negotiations over the text. The European Conservatives and Reformists, the group of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's Fratelli d'Italia, also voted against. But their combined opposition was not enough to block the resolution, which passed with support from a broad cross-ideological majority.

+ Ireland’s basic income for the arts scheme becomes permanent.

+ Why comics needs its own Criterion Closet, an inside look at THE STACKS.

+ stop counting. what you love matters..
Cardiff University's Dr Lucy Bennett put it well in that same piece: "Once taste is turned into a scoreboard with ratings, competition then inevitably follows." Which, yes — but I'd push that further. Competition doesn't just follow. It replaces something. In the war to protect a number, the actual shows get swallowed whole. Nobody in these review threads is talking about what made "Ozymandias" so devastating, or what any of these subsequent shows did differently. They’re just defending territory. The number had stopped being a representation of the thing and had become the thing itself.

+ Marvel Comics has the optimisation sickness.
The current status quo at Marvel seems to be that if a storyline is successful they'll publish too many comics about it and it will get derailed. If a storyline isn't successful enough they'll publish too many comics about it and it will get derailed.

+ The Secretive Company Filling Video Game Sites With Gambling And AI.
Chris Button, an Australian tech journalist and former contributor, wasn't pleased to see his old profile alongside the AI authors. All of his former articles were edited to include closing sections pointing to casino and betting guides. He attempted to have his author profile removed by emailing the new management of GamesHub, but he never received a response. However, he no longer appears on the Meet the Team page. Button is disappointed with what the site has become. "Seeing GamesHub transformed into a site promoting gambling is devastating, not just for those who wrote for the site, but for the industry the publication championed", he said.

+ Friendly reminder that The Importance of Being Earnest is available to watch for free a little while longer. Chaotic fun, highly recommend.

3/18/2026 Inspiration Trail

Mar. 18th, 2026 03:56 pm
mrkinch: Erik holding fieldglasses in "Russia" (bins)
[personal profile] mrkinch
It was quite pleasant on Inspiration Trail this morning thanks to a nice breeze. I had a rocky start but was on the rise before the sun came up. Also after the sun came up. As I said.:) Anyway, once I actually got started I had a reasonably productive morning. Finally Wilson's Warblers! and a Western Flycatcher. There were Blue-gray Gnatcatchers where they were four days ago, and still a White-crowned Sparrow singing near the parking lot, but either he changed songs or it's a different individual. Biggest surprise was a Varied Thrush in the dense trees towards the top of the trail. The list: )

There are usually a few American White Pelicans on San Pablo Reservoir, but this morning a large flock, thirty-five or so, was gathered near the far shore. I don't know where they went, but when I next looked they were gone.

wednesday reads

Mar. 18th, 2026 05:13 pm
isis: Isis statue (statue)
[personal profile] isis
What I've recently finished reading:

Blood over Bright Haven by M. L. Wang. I'm a sucker for technology-infused magic, and I really liked the sort of computer-programming-magic here; in general the worldbuilding reminded me a bit of the TV show Arcane, which of course has its "magitech", but the main similarity is the elite vs the underclass (who they exploit), and the dark truths behind the marvels of the city. However, the characters are one-dimensional, with stereotypical views that either clearly cast them as the villains or that make it obvious the narrative will be about their realizations that change their views. I will say, though, that I was (pleasantly) surprised by the ending, as I applaud the writer for choosing the more realistic and interesting path over what you might expect from YA.

Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes by Leah Litman, who is a law professor and co-host of the podcast Strict Scrutiny, which I've never listened to, but I have heard her on NPR and other people's podcasts. I agree with her main thesis, that the Court has gone off the rails by picking and choosing their "legal principles" by whether or not they agree (ideologically) with the outcome that will result, which frankly stinks. It's well-researched, with lots of cites and notes. However, each of the five chapters is presented using the conceit of a particular show or movie, and as I was only familiar with most of them through osmosis, this didn't really work for me and sometimes seemed overly pop-culture-cutesy. (Like, Barbie - the movie, not the toy - is used as the lens to examine overturning Roe vs. Wade; Game of Thrones tells us that Winter Is Coming For Voting Rights; Mean Girls don't want to sit with LGBTQ people.) For an old Gen-X-er like me it seems like unnecessary metaphor, but maybe it will land better with people who want more glitz and meme in their nonfiction...but in that case, maybe a relatively dense book about law is not what they will be reading? I also will gripe about the editing, which seems particularly poor in the last chapter where Litman misspelled Ronald Reagan's surname and gave the same Neil Gorsuch quote twice within a few paragraphs.

(no subject)

Mar. 18th, 2026 06:29 pm
flemmings: (Default)
[personal profile] flemmings
My occasional trips to Sushi on Bloor usually happen on Thursdays because I generally have physio on Wednesday. But my appointments have been on Tuesday lately for reasons I forget-- probably because everyone wants mid-Wednesday slots-- so I decided to eat out today. On the days they open at noon ie Weds-Sunday, 3:30 will get you the down time and a half empty restaurant, though not on weekends. Whether it's because Wednesday or whether it's because March break, the place was as packed as Christmas and for the same reason: parties of six or eight people celebrating who knows what. And no, no kids that I could see. It was a brief wait in any case, and I got my bento in short order. But my usual Thursday server wasn't there and I had to manage the doors myself. OTOH the waiter looked to be at least in his 50s, meaning possibly my age in reality, so I can't complain. Rather like the server at Le Paradis who, for all her energetic bustling, looked to be in her 70s. 'Why is she still working?' my s-i-l wondered. Well, times are hard, maybe someone called in sick, maybe she just wants to. I'd still be working if I was able-bodied,  for sure.

Seems I finished nothing this week except a couple if Dr Priestleys and that Agatha Christie on the weekend. Watched a lot of Tiktok videos, I guess. Finally made some progress with The Shadow of the Wind, a dead tree for late evening reads when I must be off the tablet. I am always subconsciously prepared for male Spanish writers to be unsatisfactory in their attitudes to women, especially Latin American writers. We shall see if this applies to writers from the motherland. After all, Don Quixote has a female character who simply can't be having with all these men projecting their romantic desires onto her, which I think very enlightened of Cervantes.

Science

Mar. 18th, 2026 04:12 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Earth's changing climate is harming crop diversity exactly where the security of global food production needs it most

A new study warns that if global warming surpasses 1.5°C, vast regions could lose critical crop diversity, heightening the risk to worldwide food security.

Researchers predict that about one-third of global food production may be in jeopardy due to higher temperatures, underscoring how climate change is expected to reshape agriculture, especially in vulnerable low-latitude countries.



You know what? I think they're barking up the wrong tree here. Humans have done FAR more damage to the foodstream than climate change has so far. I'm sure climate change will get around to that, but it's late to the party. Humans have already discarded many traditional crops because they don't lend themselves to commercial growing, drastically limiting the typical diet.

Read more... )

Dept. of Memes

Mar. 18th, 2026 02:25 pm
kaffy_r: Diane/Leo Dillon illo of young black girl (House of the Spirits)
[personal profile] kaffy_r
Music Meme, Day 23

A song with a color in the title:

I knew almost immediately what song I wanted to share to fulfill this requirement. Cassandra Wilson's "Blue Lights 'til Dawn." Her lovely, throaty contralto makes this song particularly sensual. The loping rhythm is just right and the band backing her does her proud. 



As is usually the case with me, I remembered another song with a different type of fascination: REM's "Green Grow the Rushes," from their amazing album "Maps and Legends." I've heard that the band had a complicated, somewhat ambivalent relationship with the album, although I can't find what I recall was the story where I read that. Perhaps it's just a fable ... anyhow, I used to play the entire album almost every day on my way to work. I was hypnotized by the single "Maps and Legends" and sometimes played it on repeat. "Green Grow the Rushes" was another song that felt like the world Stipe wrote and sang about was taking a breath, getting ready for the rest of this Southern Gothic masterpiece of an album. 

So here in its hypnotically resplendent Southern Gothic glory is "Green Grow the Rushes."


 

Here is a link to my last post, which in turn holds links to previous entries. 


RIP (Read In Progress) Wednesday

Mar. 18th, 2026 03:56 pm
silversea: A dragon reading a book (Reading Dragon)
[personal profile] silversea posting in [community profile] booknook
Happy Wednesday! Are you keeping up with your books?

What I'm Doing Wednesday

Mar. 18th, 2026 02:51 pm
sage: close up of a red poppy (season: spring)
[personal profile] sage
EDITED TO ADD: The GoFundMe to support MinoanMiss/RubyNye's burial/memorial costs is here.

books
A Murderous Relation (Veronica Speedwell #5) by Deanna Raybourn. 2020. Kinky London again.
An Unexpected Peril (Veronica Speedwell #6). 2021. Mountaineering.
An Impossible Impostor (Veronica Speedwell #7). 2022. Return of Martin Guerre. Too much romance by far.
A Sinister Revenge (Veronica Speedwell #8). 2023. Dinosaur house party. Too much romance, still.
A Grave Robbery (Veronica Speedwell #9). 2024. Evil lesbian Dr Frankenstein. *sigh*
currently reading: A Ghastly Catastrophe (Veronica Speedwell #10). 2026. Dracula.

yarning
Sold a snek, a turkey leg, and 2 mushrooms. Got the carrots and kickbunny to KA in the mail (and worked out Click-n-Ship after USPS disabled my old login info). Didn't go to yarn group, even though I was dressed and ready. A strong cold front was on the verge of coming in and I just felt bad. So that's five in a row that I've missed, doh. I did post some pics to the group chat, so they know I'm still involved.

media
The free Importance of Being Earnest is expiring this evening. REALLY fun! <333

healthcrap
I finally called to renew my healthcare coverage, and there are delays on their end, thanks to their new system. Had to reschedule botox for migraines until next month.

#resist
+ Check locally for anti-war protests. I'm finding Reddit and Instagram to be fairly good sources if you check often.
+ March 28: #50501 No Kings Protest #3

astrology
Mercury Retrograde ends on the 20th, the same day as the Equinox (yay SPRING)! OTOH, the last time that all the outer planets were in their current positions, we were in the US Civil War. That doesn't mean we're headed into a new civil war by any means, obvsly, but it's a pretty dreadful interesting time in the skies.

I hope all of you are doing well! <333

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kaberett

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