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post script
Feb. 5th, 2026 08:58 amForgot to mention that Discourse Blog gave me three one-month gift subscriptions--let me know if you'd like one.
past the post
Feb. 4th, 2026 11:00 pmI am not a sophisticated reader or news consumer, but I did become an adult at a time when people advised subscribing to the local paper as a way to settle into a new city. I had a Sunday NY Times subscription when I was in grad school, and I bought a Sunday Washington Post subscription once I had a steady income here. I kept that subscription for decades, even as the Sunday edition shrank to almost nothing. I didn't go digital-only until the Post stopped including Parade magazine a few years ago.
I never read the OpEd section of any paper, so the immediate changes after Bezos bought the Post didn't bother me that much. The parts that justified the subscription were the Food section and a couple of columnists in the Business section (Michelle Singletary (personal finance), Karla Miller (workplace advice), Geoffrey Fowler (personal tech), and Andrew Van Dam (Department of Data)). In December, I got an email that the cost of a digital subscription was going up by almost 50%. That convinced me it was time to pull the plug.
I already subscribe to The 51st State (a local news outlet), Defector (mostly sports), Discourse (mostly politics), and Flaming Hydra (everything from journalism to poetry). Note that this doesn't mean that I actually read all (or any) of their content. Nevertheless, I'd like to send my former Post subscription money somewhere. Wired, Pro Publica, Associated Press, and Texas Observer are at the top of the list, but I haven't made up my mind.
I never read the OpEd section of any paper, so the immediate changes after Bezos bought the Post didn't bother me that much. The parts that justified the subscription were the Food section and a couple of columnists in the Business section (Michelle Singletary (personal finance), Karla Miller (workplace advice), Geoffrey Fowler (personal tech), and Andrew Van Dam (Department of Data)). In December, I got an email that the cost of a digital subscription was going up by almost 50%. That convinced me it was time to pull the plug.
I already subscribe to The 51st State (a local news outlet), Defector (mostly sports), Discourse (mostly politics), and Flaming Hydra (everything from journalism to poetry). Note that this doesn't mean that I actually read all (or any) of their content. Nevertheless, I'd like to send my former Post subscription money somewhere. Wired, Pro Publica, Associated Press, and Texas Observer are at the top of the list, but I haven't made up my mind.
Snow and January reading
Jan. 31st, 2026 10:40 pmWe got about 5 inches of snow and 5 inches of sleet last weekend. Here's a view from our front door this past week:
We have been using metal shovels to break the layer of ice before clearing the snow. The town plowed our street around 4 a.m. last Sunday and then not again until Tuesday around 5 p.m. Temperatures have remained well below freezing, so it's been interesting (by which I mean infuriating) to see who typically doesn't clear their sidewalk and just waits for it to melt. Our next-door neighbors have a toddler and still left a sheet of ice on their sidewalk until Thursday. It took us half an hour to walk half a mile to the ramen restaurant Wednesday evening. Today we had to get groceries and dog treats. Main roads are mostly clear, but snow and ice are piled at corners, making turns largely blind. Temperatures might reach 32 degrees Fahrenheit briefly one day this week?
It's good weather to stay in and read, but I only managed to finish two books this month. Work has just been horribly busy. At least I'm more than halfway through performance reviews, and the difficult ones (for the people who aren't as great as they think they are) are done.
Song of Ancient Lovers, Laura Restrepo (translated from Spanish by Carolina de Robertis)
A sprawling, ambitious novel that I am not smart enough to read. The story of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon is told along with a modern story of a young graduate student who travels to Yemen to research historical traces of the Queen of Sheba. He winds up working for Doctors Without Borders, helping refugees in the camps and those lucky enough to make it to shore. Along the way are brief interludes about other scholars who were smitten with the Queen of Sheba and frequent quotations from philosophers, poets, and religious texts. There are also soul-crushing descriptions of migrant experiences; apparently the human traffickers dump them out of boats to evade authorities. The migrants have to swim to shore but they don't know where they are because the waters and shores are dark. One of the things the grad student does is sit for hours in a Jeep on a beach with the lights on.
The Sentence, Louise Erdrich
This is the book with the binding error. It's different from her other books in that it is set in very recent times: from November 2019 to November 2020. In that year, COVID-19 arrived in the U.S., and George Floyd was murdered. I think that one thing that must be hard about writing about contemporary events is that readers will likely have their own impressions and memories of those events. At least that's one possible explanation for why this book has a lower rating on Goodreads. The protagonist, Tookie, gets a job at a small, independent Native bookstore in Minneapolis after her prison sentence is commuted. Her husband was a tribal cop who arrested her but then quit shortly after she was convicted and sent to prison. Erdrich has a small, independent Native bookstore in Minneapolis, and I suspect that many of the details in this novel came from her bookstore (the owner of the bookstore in the book is also named Louise but is largely absent).
We have been using metal shovels to break the layer of ice before clearing the snow. The town plowed our street around 4 a.m. last Sunday and then not again until Tuesday around 5 p.m. Temperatures have remained well below freezing, so it's been interesting (by which I mean infuriating) to see who typically doesn't clear their sidewalk and just waits for it to melt. Our next-door neighbors have a toddler and still left a sheet of ice on their sidewalk until Thursday. It took us half an hour to walk half a mile to the ramen restaurant Wednesday evening. Today we had to get groceries and dog treats. Main roads are mostly clear, but snow and ice are piled at corners, making turns largely blind. Temperatures might reach 32 degrees Fahrenheit briefly one day this week?
It's good weather to stay in and read, but I only managed to finish two books this month. Work has just been horribly busy. At least I'm more than halfway through performance reviews, and the difficult ones (for the people who aren't as great as they think they are) are done.
Song of Ancient Lovers, Laura Restrepo (translated from Spanish by Carolina de Robertis)
A sprawling, ambitious novel that I am not smart enough to read. The story of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon is told along with a modern story of a young graduate student who travels to Yemen to research historical traces of the Queen of Sheba. He winds up working for Doctors Without Borders, helping refugees in the camps and those lucky enough to make it to shore. Along the way are brief interludes about other scholars who were smitten with the Queen of Sheba and frequent quotations from philosophers, poets, and religious texts. There are also soul-crushing descriptions of migrant experiences; apparently the human traffickers dump them out of boats to evade authorities. The migrants have to swim to shore but they don't know where they are because the waters and shores are dark. One of the things the grad student does is sit for hours in a Jeep on a beach with the lights on.
The Sentence, Louise Erdrich
This is the book with the binding error. It's different from her other books in that it is set in very recent times: from November 2019 to November 2020. In that year, COVID-19 arrived in the U.S., and George Floyd was murdered. I think that one thing that must be hard about writing about contemporary events is that readers will likely have their own impressions and memories of those events. At least that's one possible explanation for why this book has a lower rating on Goodreads. The protagonist, Tookie, gets a job at a small, independent Native bookstore in Minneapolis after her prison sentence is commuted. Her husband was a tribal cop who arrested her but then quit shortly after she was convicted and sent to prison. Erdrich has a small, independent Native bookstore in Minneapolis, and I suspect that many of the details in this novel came from her bookstore (the owner of the bookstore in the book is also named Louise but is largely absent).
deep freeze
Jan. 24th, 2026 10:31 pmSome random thoughts collected to make a post.
We went the Archie Edwards Blues Heritage Foundation a week ago to see Cheick Hamala Diabaté perform with four other musicians. Archie Edwards was a barber who also played Piedmont blues; he held a jam session every Saturday afternoon at his barbershop in northeast DC; there's still a Saturday afternoon jam session at the foundation. Diabaté plays a variety of string instruments from the ngoni to 10-string guitars.
Here he is in the center, with an instrument I didn't catch the name for.
This concert is pretty much the only thing we've done this month. I guess we also had the last listening session for the Betty Carter book on the 5th.
The other excitement is that this book I bought had a binding error: pages 151 to 182 were inserted in reverse order, and several of the pages were ripped.
When it gets cold, I want to do two things: hibernate and eat food from warm places. India, Mexico, Thailand, Vietnam. I have a mango for the approaching snowstorm. If I knew any West African recipes this is when I'd make 'em. Denial is my coping mechanism.
We're in the thick of performance reviews, and I have twice as many to do as I did last year. The reviews for people who are great are easy, almost enjoyable to write. The reviews for people who think they're doing great but aren't are excruciating.
I feel like I've been on a spending spree. I bought a subscription to NBA TV to watch Spurs games that aren't on national tv, some vintage Tupperware items and an Irish wool sweater from eBay. The Washington National Opera did the hard thing and left the Kennedy Center, so I bought tickets to one of the operas remaining in the season, Scott Joplin's Treemonisha.
We went the Archie Edwards Blues Heritage Foundation a week ago to see Cheick Hamala Diabaté perform with four other musicians. Archie Edwards was a barber who also played Piedmont blues; he held a jam session every Saturday afternoon at his barbershop in northeast DC; there's still a Saturday afternoon jam session at the foundation. Diabaté plays a variety of string instruments from the ngoni to 10-string guitars.
Here he is in the center, with an instrument I didn't catch the name for.
This concert is pretty much the only thing we've done this month. I guess we also had the last listening session for the Betty Carter book on the 5th.
The other excitement is that this book I bought had a binding error: pages 151 to 182 were inserted in reverse order, and several of the pages were ripped.
When it gets cold, I want to do two things: hibernate and eat food from warm places. India, Mexico, Thailand, Vietnam. I have a mango for the approaching snowstorm. If I knew any West African recipes this is when I'd make 'em. Denial is my coping mechanism.
We're in the thick of performance reviews, and I have twice as many to do as I did last year. The reviews for people who are great are easy, almost enjoyable to write. The reviews for people who think they're doing great but aren't are excruciating.
I feel like I've been on a spending spree. I bought a subscription to NBA TV to watch Spurs games that aren't on national tv, some vintage Tupperware items and an Irish wool sweater from eBay. The Washington National Opera did the hard thing and left the Kennedy Center, so I bought tickets to one of the operas remaining in the season, Scott Joplin's Treemonisha.
The week of Christmas, a warning appeared in our car that the brake pads needed to be replaced. I'm sure we replaced the brake pads once in the nine years we've had the car, but I can't remember when exactly. Anyway, considering most of the driving is urban and drivers are increasingly aggressive, it seemed worthwhile to check the brakes. Because of the holidays we had to wait 10 days for the shop to have an opening. On Monday two more warnings appeared: the battery was no longer charging, and the engine temperature was high (after about 10 or 15 minutes of normal city driving).
We needed a car for the days the shop would have ours, so we rented one. The rental outpost within walking distance only had SUVs (convenient--they also cost more to rent), so we ended up with a Ford Escape. Quite a size difference from a Mini Cooper. Obviously a few days isn't enough time to get used to an SUV, and a Ford Escape is considered on the smaller side. Still, I didn't see a lot of advantage in riding in one. We even took it to Costco, which is made for SUV owners.
I've hated SUVs for a long time. I associate their rise in popularity with auto manufacturers evading fuel efficiency standards set by the Clinton administration. They're another example of companies selling people stuff they don't need for more than they can afford, and they set off a race where everyone feels like they have to drive a tank to feel safe. There are some SUVs now that are built on compact or sedan platforms, so I guess the SUV label is just marketing?
Anyway, even with the horrible start to the new year and having to go back to a full five-day work week, it's nice to have our car back. The brake pads are fine, but the sensor was broken. The alternator (and a pulley?!) had to be repaired. Nice to have one thing fixed.
We needed a car for the days the shop would have ours, so we rented one. The rental outpost within walking distance only had SUVs (convenient--they also cost more to rent), so we ended up with a Ford Escape. Quite a size difference from a Mini Cooper. Obviously a few days isn't enough time to get used to an SUV, and a Ford Escape is considered on the smaller side. Still, I didn't see a lot of advantage in riding in one. We even took it to Costco, which is made for SUV owners.
I've hated SUVs for a long time. I associate their rise in popularity with auto manufacturers evading fuel efficiency standards set by the Clinton administration. They're another example of companies selling people stuff they don't need for more than they can afford, and they set off a race where everyone feels like they have to drive a tank to feel safe. There are some SUVs now that are built on compact or sedan platforms, so I guess the SUV label is just marketing?
Anyway, even with the horrible start to the new year and having to go back to a full five-day work week, it's nice to have our car back. The brake pads are fine, but the sensor was broken. The alternator (and a pulley?!) had to be repaired. Nice to have one thing fixed.
year-end meme
Dec. 31st, 2025 09:23 pm1. What did you do in 2025 that you'd never done before?
So many things! I had National Guards keep me company while I waited on Metro platforms. I told an employee that we were eliminating her job. I read about my college roommate's efforts to get her house back into livable condition after the Altadena fire. I stood next to a palm tree on the shore of Lake Champlain. I learned that the Washington Post will assign more people to cover the demolition of the East Wing of the White House than the kidnappings of local residents by masked goons.
2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
No x2
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
I haven't spoken to her in decades, but my niece had her third kid early in the year. She's now pregnant with her fourth.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
I think that I'm going to change this to "Did anyone important to you die?" Maeve66/Abra and Flaco Jimenez top the list.
5. What countries did you visit?
None
6. What would you like to have in 2026 that you lacked in 2025?
Less work (same as last year)
7. What date from 2025 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
March 3rd, the day of layoffs
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Not getting shot?
9. What was your biggest failure?
so many (same as last year).
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Just the usual colds, aches, and pains. I've had three mini-colds in the past 10 days or so, where I feel lousy for 24 hours. I stayed home on Christmas for one of them.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
The best thing I bought (actually, Brent bought it, but I picked it out) is a rechargeable light that I can strap to my bike handlebars or clip to my clothes. Very handy when the sun sets before 5 p.m.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
everybody who resisted the administration
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Whose didn't?
14. Where did most of your money go?
Medical expenses, mortgage, the usual.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
absolutely nothing
16. What was the worst thing you bought in 2025? (Formerly "What song(s) will always remind you of 2025?"--I agree with ioplokon that this question is bad)
One aspect of a meh year is that nothing really terrible stands out. I guess the Charles Mingus and Ariel Dorfman books were pretty bad, but those are tiny stakes.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
I. Happier or sadder? sadder
II. Thinner or fatter? about the same
III. Richer or poorer? about the same
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
rest
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
work will probably be the answer until I retire/die, worry about being shot or kidnapped
20. How did you spend Christmas?
at home with Mosey and a mild cold
21. What was the best live show/concert/event you attended? (Formerly "Did you fall in love in 2025?" a.k.a. the El DeBarge question)
My favorite band reunited for a couple of shows again this year. For something new and different, some friends of ours invited us to see Yo La Tengo with the Sun Ra Arkestra, which was a blast, although the Sun Ra Arkestra didn't go as far into weirdness as the other times we've seen them. Also, Merry TubaChristmas deserves a mention as long as I'm talking about weirdness. The Kennedy Center was depressing and the crowd obnoxious, but the sound of over a hundred tubas playing "Deck the Halls" (particularly the fa-la-la-la-la-la-la part) was supremely entertaining.
22. What was something fun you learned this year? (was "How many one-night stands?")
From the Stax Records book: Booker T. and the MGs (R.I.P. Steve Cropper) had just recorded what would be their first hit single. All of the band members were in or just graduated from high school. When they were thinking of a name for the song, someone suggested "Onions," because they're funky. I can't now remember whether it was thought that onions were too funky or not funky enough, but apparently someone else said, "Well, what about 'Green Onions'?" and everyone agreed that green onions had the correct level of funk.
23. What was your favorite TV program?
Abbott Elementary continues to entertain me (same as last year). "Is that smoke?" "Either that or the rats have elected a new pope."
24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
It's amazing how many new shitheads were appointed to lead federal agencies.
25. What was the best book you read in 2025?
Nonfiction: Soulsville, U.S.A.: The Story of Stax Records
Fiction: The Indians Won
26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Not a discovery, but I think Public Enemy's new album is pretty good.
27. What did you want and get?
better health for Brent, a couple of rounds of minigolf
28. What did you want but didn't get?
less work, better medications for Brent's long Covid and Mosey's anxiety
29. What was your favorite film of this year?
The only film I saw from this year, One Battle After Another. I enjoyed it, although it was about 20 minutes too long.
30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 51. I avoided work, and Brent took me out for black-light indoor minigolf and a Frenchy dinner.
31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Better health for Brent
32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2025?
"do I have to leave the house today?"
33. What kept you sane?
books, Brent, silly amusements
34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
nobody
35. What political issue stirred you the most?
kidnapping people off the streets
36. Who did you miss?
Our friends M. and S. moved to Amsterdam in October. Maeve66/Abra (she loved this meme).
37. Who was the best new person you met?
Technically, we met Adiante Franszoon, a wood carver from Suriname, a couple of years ago at an arts and crafts holiday market (with the terrible name of "Sparkle Mart"), but this year we ordered some cutting boards and drove to his studio in Baltimore to pick them up. We hung out with him for about an hour. He told us how he came to the U.S. and a little about the wood carving tradition in Suriname. If we didn't have a dog who chews furniture I'd buy a table from him: adiantefranszoon.com
38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2025:
I used to say that I'm not easily offended, but as it turns out I am a snowflake, because I'm offended by most everything that happened at the federal level. What I should say is that I'm not easily insulted. It won't hurt my feelings if you think I'm dumb or ugly or whatever.
39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
"They're going wild," the call came in
At early morning pre-dawn, then
"The followers of chaos out of control
They're numbering the monkeys
The monkeys and the monkeys,"
"Disturbance at the Heron House," R.E.M.
40. Post a picture of something(one) that made you happy this year.
Here's the resident kitty of a small engine repair shop where I got our lawn mower blades sharpened.
41. Did you wrong or hurt somebody in 2025?
I fired someone so, yeah.
42. Is there some new place you are planning to visit in 2026?
not yet. We're tentatively thinking Memphis (Tennessee, not Egypt).
43. Where would you have wanted to go and did not in 2025?
We also thought about Memphis for this year, but travel seems to be one of Brent's fatigue triggers. We also thought about going to the Alamo Bowl to watch USC, but then we found out it was on a Tuesday rather than a Saturday.
44. Did you learn any new life skills in 2025?
I did not
45. Any new food or drink preferences developed in 2025?
No, but I learned that Chipotle's queso is horribly bland. It's worse than ballpark queso, which at least tastes like chemicals.
46. What is your greatest fear for 2026?
that I will be kidnapped and sent to an El Salvador torture factory
47. Did you follow any sports events in 2025?
all the bad ones (same as last year)
48. Which social media occupied most of your time in 2025?
It was probably BlueSky, even though the general tone remains annoyingly smug.
49. Is there somebody you feel particularly grateful to this year?
Brent still laughs at my jokes.
50. Name a hope you have for 2026.
no
So many things! I had National Guards keep me company while I waited on Metro platforms. I told an employee that we were eliminating her job. I read about my college roommate's efforts to get her house back into livable condition after the Altadena fire. I stood next to a palm tree on the shore of Lake Champlain. I learned that the Washington Post will assign more people to cover the demolition of the East Wing of the White House than the kidnappings of local residents by masked goons.
2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
No x2
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
I haven't spoken to her in decades, but my niece had her third kid early in the year. She's now pregnant with her fourth.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
I think that I'm going to change this to "Did anyone important to you die?" Maeve66/Abra and Flaco Jimenez top the list.
5. What countries did you visit?
None
6. What would you like to have in 2026 that you lacked in 2025?
Less work (same as last year)
7. What date from 2025 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
March 3rd, the day of layoffs
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Not getting shot?
9. What was your biggest failure?
so many (same as last year).
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Just the usual colds, aches, and pains. I've had three mini-colds in the past 10 days or so, where I feel lousy for 24 hours. I stayed home on Christmas for one of them.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
The best thing I bought (actually, Brent bought it, but I picked it out) is a rechargeable light that I can strap to my bike handlebars or clip to my clothes. Very handy when the sun sets before 5 p.m.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
everybody who resisted the administration
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Whose didn't?
14. Where did most of your money go?
Medical expenses, mortgage, the usual.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
absolutely nothing
16. What was the worst thing you bought in 2025? (Formerly "What song(s) will always remind you of 2025?"--I agree with ioplokon that this question is bad)
One aspect of a meh year is that nothing really terrible stands out. I guess the Charles Mingus and Ariel Dorfman books were pretty bad, but those are tiny stakes.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
I. Happier or sadder? sadder
II. Thinner or fatter? about the same
III. Richer or poorer? about the same
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
rest
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
work will probably be the answer until I retire/die, worry about being shot or kidnapped
20. How did you spend Christmas?
at home with Mosey and a mild cold
21. What was the best live show/concert/event you attended? (Formerly "Did you fall in love in 2025?" a.k.a. the El DeBarge question)
My favorite band reunited for a couple of shows again this year. For something new and different, some friends of ours invited us to see Yo La Tengo with the Sun Ra Arkestra, which was a blast, although the Sun Ra Arkestra didn't go as far into weirdness as the other times we've seen them. Also, Merry TubaChristmas deserves a mention as long as I'm talking about weirdness. The Kennedy Center was depressing and the crowd obnoxious, but the sound of over a hundred tubas playing "Deck the Halls" (particularly the fa-la-la-la-la-la-la part) was supremely entertaining.
22. What was something fun you learned this year? (was "How many one-night stands?")
From the Stax Records book: Booker T. and the MGs (R.I.P. Steve Cropper) had just recorded what would be their first hit single. All of the band members were in or just graduated from high school. When they were thinking of a name for the song, someone suggested "Onions," because they're funky. I can't now remember whether it was thought that onions were too funky or not funky enough, but apparently someone else said, "Well, what about 'Green Onions'?" and everyone agreed that green onions had the correct level of funk.
23. What was your favorite TV program?
Abbott Elementary continues to entertain me (same as last year). "Is that smoke?" "Either that or the rats have elected a new pope."
24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
It's amazing how many new shitheads were appointed to lead federal agencies.
25. What was the best book you read in 2025?
Nonfiction: Soulsville, U.S.A.: The Story of Stax Records
Fiction: The Indians Won
26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Not a discovery, but I think Public Enemy's new album is pretty good.
27. What did you want and get?
better health for Brent, a couple of rounds of minigolf
28. What did you want but didn't get?
less work, better medications for Brent's long Covid and Mosey's anxiety
29. What was your favorite film of this year?
The only film I saw from this year, One Battle After Another. I enjoyed it, although it was about 20 minutes too long.
30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 51. I avoided work, and Brent took me out for black-light indoor minigolf and a Frenchy dinner.
31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Better health for Brent
32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2025?
"do I have to leave the house today?"
33. What kept you sane?
books, Brent, silly amusements
34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
nobody
35. What political issue stirred you the most?
kidnapping people off the streets
36. Who did you miss?
Our friends M. and S. moved to Amsterdam in October. Maeve66/Abra (she loved this meme).
37. Who was the best new person you met?
Technically, we met Adiante Franszoon, a wood carver from Suriname, a couple of years ago at an arts and crafts holiday market (with the terrible name of "Sparkle Mart"), but this year we ordered some cutting boards and drove to his studio in Baltimore to pick them up. We hung out with him for about an hour. He told us how he came to the U.S. and a little about the wood carving tradition in Suriname. If we didn't have a dog who chews furniture I'd buy a table from him: adiantefranszoon.com
38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2025:
I used to say that I'm not easily offended, but as it turns out I am a snowflake, because I'm offended by most everything that happened at the federal level. What I should say is that I'm not easily insulted. It won't hurt my feelings if you think I'm dumb or ugly or whatever.
39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
"They're going wild," the call came in
At early morning pre-dawn, then
"The followers of chaos out of control
They're numbering the monkeys
The monkeys and the monkeys,"
"Disturbance at the Heron House," R.E.M.
40. Post a picture of something(one) that made you happy this year.
Here's the resident kitty of a small engine repair shop where I got our lawn mower blades sharpened.
41. Did you wrong or hurt somebody in 2025?
I fired someone so, yeah.
42. Is there some new place you are planning to visit in 2026?
not yet. We're tentatively thinking Memphis (Tennessee, not Egypt).
43. Where would you have wanted to go and did not in 2025?
We also thought about Memphis for this year, but travel seems to be one of Brent's fatigue triggers. We also thought about going to the Alamo Bowl to watch USC, but then we found out it was on a Tuesday rather than a Saturday.
44. Did you learn any new life skills in 2025?
I did not
45. Any new food or drink preferences developed in 2025?
No, but I learned that Chipotle's queso is horribly bland. It's worse than ballpark queso, which at least tastes like chemicals.
46. What is your greatest fear for 2026?
that I will be kidnapped and sent to an El Salvador torture factory
47. Did you follow any sports events in 2025?
all the bad ones (same as last year)
48. Which social media occupied most of your time in 2025?
It was probably BlueSky, even though the general tone remains annoyingly smug.
49. Is there somebody you feel particularly grateful to this year?
Brent still laughs at my jokes.
50. Name a hope you have for 2026.
no
December reading
Dec. 30th, 2025 09:49 pmOpen the Door: The Life and Music of Betty Carter, William R. Bauer
This was the book club selection for the second half of the year, suggested by one of the regulars who is writing a book about Black entrepreneurs in the music industry. Betty Carter (born Lillie Mae Jones) was a bebop singer who was fiercely independent, even creating her own record label (Bet-Car) because she didn't want to be told whom to work with. Bauer is an academic, and as a result the book was pretty dry. The musical analyses were completely impenetrable to me; even our book club host, a jazz musician, found them hard to read. I have to admit that Bauer's largely sympathetic portrayal of Carter still left me feeling that I wouldn't have wanted to spend much time with her. Her early singing reminded us all of Sarah Vaughan.
The Name of This Band Is R.E.M., Peter Ames Carlin
Even though R.E.M. is one of my favorite bands (and one of the few rock bands I like), I hadn't read much about them. Turns out there are a lot of books about this band, and Carlin lists several in his bibliography. It turns out that a good thing to do during a pandemic is research a book: People are available for video interviews, a lot of sources can be accessed online, etc. I thought that Carlin found a good balance between describing the band members and describing the music they made. He didn't try to psychoanalyze them or assign them a place (e.g., best American rock band) in history. I enjoyed it a lot, and I'm also relistening to all of their albums in order of release, starting with the EP Chronic Town. We just finished the last of the IRS albums (Document).
Accordion Eulogies: A Memoir of Music, Migration, and Mexico, Noé Álvarez
I think that maybe Álvarez was trying to do too many things with this book. Álvarez was raised by farm workers of Mexican descent in Yakima, Washington, and stories of his paternal grandfather, an accordionist who left women and children in Mexico and the U.S., loomed particularly large. In an effort to become closer to his roots, Álvarez takes up the accordion. He also visits two areas where the accordion is a prominent part of the local traditional music: Louisiana and San Antonio. Then he goes to the Mexican state of Michoacán, where his grandfather was from. In between (and not as interesting) are repeated meditations on family, masculinity, culture, and migration. The interviews with accordion players (and one maker) and the descriptions of life in rural Michoacán are the best parts.
Malinalli, Veronica Chapa
Another in the mini-genre of modern updates of legendary women, usually with a heavy dose of fantasy/magic. Malinalli is one of many names for the Indigenous woman who served as an interpreter to Hernán Cortés. In Chapa's version, Malinalli was born to upper middle class parents; her twin brother was sent away to school (the terribly named House of Magical Studies), and she was trained as a priestess, where her facility with languages is first noted. She is kidnapped and sold into slavery, eventually winding up with Cortés. This is Chapa's first novel, so I gave it 3 stars on Goodreads, but it's more like 2.5. There are many similar stories that are better written.
This was the book club selection for the second half of the year, suggested by one of the regulars who is writing a book about Black entrepreneurs in the music industry. Betty Carter (born Lillie Mae Jones) was a bebop singer who was fiercely independent, even creating her own record label (Bet-Car) because she didn't want to be told whom to work with. Bauer is an academic, and as a result the book was pretty dry. The musical analyses were completely impenetrable to me; even our book club host, a jazz musician, found them hard to read. I have to admit that Bauer's largely sympathetic portrayal of Carter still left me feeling that I wouldn't have wanted to spend much time with her. Her early singing reminded us all of Sarah Vaughan.
The Name of This Band Is R.E.M., Peter Ames Carlin
Even though R.E.M. is one of my favorite bands (and one of the few rock bands I like), I hadn't read much about them. Turns out there are a lot of books about this band, and Carlin lists several in his bibliography. It turns out that a good thing to do during a pandemic is research a book: People are available for video interviews, a lot of sources can be accessed online, etc. I thought that Carlin found a good balance between describing the band members and describing the music they made. He didn't try to psychoanalyze them or assign them a place (e.g., best American rock band) in history. I enjoyed it a lot, and I'm also relistening to all of their albums in order of release, starting with the EP Chronic Town. We just finished the last of the IRS albums (Document).
Accordion Eulogies: A Memoir of Music, Migration, and Mexico, Noé Álvarez
I think that maybe Álvarez was trying to do too many things with this book. Álvarez was raised by farm workers of Mexican descent in Yakima, Washington, and stories of his paternal grandfather, an accordionist who left women and children in Mexico and the U.S., loomed particularly large. In an effort to become closer to his roots, Álvarez takes up the accordion. He also visits two areas where the accordion is a prominent part of the local traditional music: Louisiana and San Antonio. Then he goes to the Mexican state of Michoacán, where his grandfather was from. In between (and not as interesting) are repeated meditations on family, masculinity, culture, and migration. The interviews with accordion players (and one maker) and the descriptions of life in rural Michoacán are the best parts.
Malinalli, Veronica Chapa
Another in the mini-genre of modern updates of legendary women, usually with a heavy dose of fantasy/magic. Malinalli is one of many names for the Indigenous woman who served as an interpreter to Hernán Cortés. In Chapa's version, Malinalli was born to upper middle class parents; her twin brother was sent away to school (the terribly named House of Magical Studies), and she was trained as a priestess, where her facility with languages is first noted. She is kidnapped and sold into slavery, eventually winding up with Cortés. This is Chapa's first novel, so I gave it 3 stars on Goodreads, but it's more like 2.5. There are many similar stories that are better written.
Family leave
Dec. 22nd, 2025 11:09 amI shouldn't be amazed that I haven't written about my mom all year; after all, I don't like her or want to think about her. And yet she takes up space in my brain, particularly around our monthly phone call. We saw my parents in San Antonio after Christmas last year. She was recovering from a broken hip and emergency replacement surgery, so she wasn't able to walk more than a step or two at a time. In addition to the physical frailty, there were signs of mental decline as well. I went to the bathroom, and there was urine on every surface below the waist. That's not surprising given that she likely had trouble navigating the move between the wheelchair and the toilet, but I was surprised that they never mentioned the mess and weren't embarrassed that we saw it. She also thought that I wanted her to show Brent photos of my childhood and brought out boxes and boxes of photos, not in any sort of order, most of which did not have me in them. I probably asked my mom if she had any baby photos to show Brent during his first trip to San Antonio over 10 years ago.
For at least a year, maybe two, my parents have talked about moving to Florida. My brother, his children, and their children all live in the Tampa/Clearwater area, along with his second wife's parents, who largely raised my nephews and who are friends with my parents. The main delay was finding an acceptable house, and then my mom's hip replacement. Amazingly, given all the physical and mental challenges, they managed to move in September.
I genuinely hoped that they would be happy; they complained of being lonely in San Antonio and spending their holidays alone. I sure as shit am not willing to spend my holidays with them after the last Christmas (I think 2019). Brent got food poisoning and couldn't go to dinner, so they nastily said that they didn't believe he'd made the trip at all and then proceeded to unload every grievance against me that they'd saved up during the previous 10 years.
My parents are, in the words of Keb' Mo', perpetual blues machines, and they are not happy. They hate the house, they "never" see family, they have to find all new doctors or figure out technology well enough to have virtual appointments, and on and on. Of course, on further discussion, they typically see at least one family member once a week, which sounds pretty often to me, considering that the great-grandchildren are in school, two of three grandchildren have full-time jobs, and one has two children under the age of 5.
The only wear and tear on me is the monthly call, which are increasingly nonsensical. I know that I shouldn't argue with someone with dementia, but my whole childhood was my parents refusing to see what was right in front of them. My hackles still go up anytime someone suggests that my experience or memory is unfounded. And here is the source of that neurosis still doing things like asking me if I have asthma and, when I say no, asking again: "Are you sure? I've heard you clearing your throat." I almost threw the phone across the room. There are also questions repeated after only five or so minutes, the unintelligible talking (I can't tell whether she's actually saying nonsense or whether she's let the phone slip and I can't hear cogent speech), the repeated statements. By the end I'm not sure who of us is losing her mind. Maybe it's both of us.
For at least a year, maybe two, my parents have talked about moving to Florida. My brother, his children, and their children all live in the Tampa/Clearwater area, along with his second wife's parents, who largely raised my nephews and who are friends with my parents. The main delay was finding an acceptable house, and then my mom's hip replacement. Amazingly, given all the physical and mental challenges, they managed to move in September.
I genuinely hoped that they would be happy; they complained of being lonely in San Antonio and spending their holidays alone. I sure as shit am not willing to spend my holidays with them after the last Christmas (I think 2019). Brent got food poisoning and couldn't go to dinner, so they nastily said that they didn't believe he'd made the trip at all and then proceeded to unload every grievance against me that they'd saved up during the previous 10 years.
My parents are, in the words of Keb' Mo', perpetual blues machines, and they are not happy. They hate the house, they "never" see family, they have to find all new doctors or figure out technology well enough to have virtual appointments, and on and on. Of course, on further discussion, they typically see at least one family member once a week, which sounds pretty often to me, considering that the great-grandchildren are in school, two of three grandchildren have full-time jobs, and one has two children under the age of 5.
The only wear and tear on me is the monthly call, which are increasingly nonsensical. I know that I shouldn't argue with someone with dementia, but my whole childhood was my parents refusing to see what was right in front of them. My hackles still go up anytime someone suggests that my experience or memory is unfounded. And here is the source of that neurosis still doing things like asking me if I have asthma and, when I say no, asking again: "Are you sure? I've heard you clearing your throat." I almost threw the phone across the room. There are also questions repeated after only five or so minutes, the unintelligible talking (I can't tell whether she's actually saying nonsense or whether she's let the phone slip and I can't hear cogent speech), the repeated statements. By the end I'm not sure who of us is losing her mind. Maybe it's both of us.
November reading
Dec. 9th, 2025 11:10 pmTwo books I bought on whims didn't turn out to be gems, but it was good to try new authors, I guess.
Allegro, Ariel Dorfman
This is billed as a mystery about Johann Sebastian Bach's death that is solved by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It is actually a hellaciously overwrought, needlessly wordy, and tedious meditation on art and how suffering affects art. There is no mystery, just page after page of absurdly intricate prose. I assume Dorfman was paid by the word. I gave it one star on Goodreads because there's a playlist at the end. That's the best part of the book.
The Nakano Thrift Shop, Hiromi Kawakami (translated by Allison Markham Powell)
The premise was alluring--a story centered on three people who work in a thrift shop in a Tokyo suburb. I did enjoy reading a Japanese novel that was about ordinary people. There are no murders, no fantasy elements, no wealthy characters. Nakano is the family name of the owner, and he employs two people, Hitomi and Takeo. His sister, Masayo, is also frequently at the shop (though she has her own business nearby and is an artist). Like a lot of workplace ensemble stories, there's a tendency for the characters to overshare and become overinvolved in each other's lives. Nakano shares details about sex with his girlfriend that I'd be embarrassed to share with a close friend, let alone co-workers I supervise. Hitomi and Takeo attempt to date despite not having anything in common. The dates are deeply awkward, yet somehow they progress to having sex, and later Hitomi decides that she is in love with Takeo. Maybe I was just too tired to appreciate this author's particular brand of quirkiness. I gave it two stars, mostly because the writing didn't make me want to bleach my eyeballs.
The Nickel Boys, Colson Whitehead
I knew this would be an emotionally draining read, but I didn't realize how draining it would be. I read it quickly, over Thanksgiving weekend, because I absolutely did not want to linger on it. Whitehead is a terrific writer, but the brutality made my eyes water and my stomach heave. I will not be watching the movie adaptation.
Allegro, Ariel Dorfman
This is billed as a mystery about Johann Sebastian Bach's death that is solved by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It is actually a hellaciously overwrought, needlessly wordy, and tedious meditation on art and how suffering affects art. There is no mystery, just page after page of absurdly intricate prose. I assume Dorfman was paid by the word. I gave it one star on Goodreads because there's a playlist at the end. That's the best part of the book.
The Nakano Thrift Shop, Hiromi Kawakami (translated by Allison Markham Powell)
The premise was alluring--a story centered on three people who work in a thrift shop in a Tokyo suburb. I did enjoy reading a Japanese novel that was about ordinary people. There are no murders, no fantasy elements, no wealthy characters. Nakano is the family name of the owner, and he employs two people, Hitomi and Takeo. His sister, Masayo, is also frequently at the shop (though she has her own business nearby and is an artist). Like a lot of workplace ensemble stories, there's a tendency for the characters to overshare and become overinvolved in each other's lives. Nakano shares details about sex with his girlfriend that I'd be embarrassed to share with a close friend, let alone co-workers I supervise. Hitomi and Takeo attempt to date despite not having anything in common. The dates are deeply awkward, yet somehow they progress to having sex, and later Hitomi decides that she is in love with Takeo. Maybe I was just too tired to appreciate this author's particular brand of quirkiness. I gave it two stars, mostly because the writing didn't make me want to bleach my eyeballs.
The Nickel Boys, Colson Whitehead
I knew this would be an emotionally draining read, but I didn't realize how draining it would be. I read it quickly, over Thanksgiving weekend, because I absolutely did not want to linger on it. Whitehead is a terrific writer, but the brutality made my eyes water and my stomach heave. I will not be watching the movie adaptation.
What a terrible year, but I feel that I should get in the spirit of today's holiday. [This year's holiday card will not exhort you to be merry, joyful, or happy.] I am grateful for the following:
- Brent
- friends near and (mostly) far
- music book club
- live music, especially my favorite band in the world's semi-annual appearances
- financially able to buy new books at independent bookstores
- a used record and book store within walking distance of our house
- a primary care physician within walking distance of our house
- rainbow turkeys
- eating lunch with co-workers
- I'm the supervisor for some really good people
- a boss who seems to respect me even though she's overworked and doesn't remember half the things I tell her or she tells me
the most boring person alive
Nov. 15th, 2025 11:11 pmI'm back in the cycle of having to work most days, and we haven't even started the accelerated schedule for Thanksgiving. I think that the last day I didn't do any work was November 1st. Some days I work 9 hours, and then I'm not in the mood to stare at my personal computer. We go to the farmers market Saturday mornings; I go to the office and my shrink on Mondays. That's about it. Excitement for me is going to one of the DC public library branches for our in-person book club listening session and then dinner. I'll get a bit of a break Thanksgiving weekend, which is only 10 days away. /slump
ICE raided an apartment building less than a mile from our house last week. Supposedly they had a warrant to arrest someone, but no one seemed to know how many people were taken away. [There was no information about it in the local news--too busy covering the shutdown, I guess.] The raid happened as the local elementary school (temporarily located a few miles away) was finishing for the day, and the neighborhood mailing list was full of people coordinating what to do with children whose parents were too afraid to go to the bus stops. There's also speculation (based on publicly available requests for bids) that ICE is looking to rent space for a field office in our town.
ICE raided an apartment building less than a mile from our house last week. Supposedly they had a warrant to arrest someone, but no one seemed to know how many people were taken away. [There was no information about it in the local news--too busy covering the shutdown, I guess.] The raid happened as the local elementary school (temporarily located a few miles away) was finishing for the day, and the neighborhood mailing list was full of people coordinating what to do with children whose parents were too afraid to go to the bus stops. There's also speculation (based on publicly available requests for bids) that ICE is looking to rent space for a field office in our town.
October reading
Nov. 2nd, 2025 10:39 pmI had been thinking that I wasn't sure that I've read a really good fiction book this year; then I read two candidates in the same month.
Perspective(s), Laurent Binet (translated by Sam Taylor)
This is a murder mystery set in 16th-century Florence featuring prominent Renaissance artists. Jacopo da Pantormo is murdered, and the Duke of Florence tasks Giorgio Vasari with finding the killer and locating a scandalous, unauthorized painting of his daughter that was stolen from his palace. The story is told as a series of letters without following any particular chronology. Benvenuto Cellini turns out to be the thief (and responsible for a couple of deaths), but it was da Pantormo's killer that had me chortling: Michelangelo, roughly 80 years old, apparently travels from Rome to Florence overnight to prevent da Pantormo from committing suicide. da Pantormo severely injures himself, so Michelangelo stabs him through the heart with a chisel, then races back to Rome in time for a morning meeting with the pope. Ending aside, this was an entertaining read, although I could've done without the philosophy of art paragraphs.
Neferura, Malayna Evans
Evans is an Egyptologist, so this story was rich in period details about ancient Egypt. Neferura was the daughter of the pharaoh Hatshepsut and the half-sister of another pharaoh, Thutmose III. Very little is known about Neferura from historical records; Evans has her as a high priestess with a lot of religious duties. The court politics and allegiances weren't that interesting to me. The most interesting part was the all-women support network and the lives of women royal and servant. It's not as well written as Madeline Miller's Circe and not as fantastical as Vaishnavi Patel's Kaikeyi, but not a bad way to pass the time.
The Indians Won, Martin Cruz Smith
First contender for best fiction I read this year. This book was originally published in 1970; I wish that I'd known about it sooner. Cruz Smith is an Indigenous writer who imagines that the Native Americans defeated the United States Army and created their own nation (Indian Nation) in the middle of North America. Several factors contribute to this alternate outcome, listed from most to least important: all of the Native Americans worked together as a single military force; European powers facilitated the purchase of advanced weapons (some even from American companies) for the Native American troops; the U.S. was in a depression after the Civil War and unable to send more troops; the economic depression led to many Americans blaming the railroad barons (e.g., angry mobs destroyed rail stations and tracks and telegraph wires), which made communication and coordination among Army posts impossible; the European powers declined to lend money to the U.S. government; there was another politically separate entity of Mormon settlers based in and around Utah that was eventually absorbed into the Indian Nation. The U.S. is divided, a larger eastern part from the Mississippi River and east and then California in the west. [In this history, most of Texas remains with Mexico.] There's also a part of the book that is set in the late '60s--the U.S. is waging war in Vietnam, but it is also negotiating with the Indian Nation for more land because of overcrowding. Cruz Smith's Indian Nation seems unrealistic in a lot of ways, but the writing is strong and the viewpoint is unique. By chance I read most of this book on Indigenous People's Day.
Pym, Mat Johnson
Second contender. An extremely good novel that was published in 2015. Johnson takes Edgar Allan Poe's only novel, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, as a starting point for another fantastical adventure novel set mostly in Antarctica. Chris Jaynes is a literature professor and the only Black faculty member at a small college in upstate New York who does not get tenure. He buys the purported memoir of Dirk Peters, who was part of Arthur Pym's expedition to Antarctica, and recruits his cousin and his best friend to follow the Pym/Peters journey. There are also meditations on race, capitalism, and power/politics. Like a lot of Goodreads reviewers, I'll never think of Little Debbie snack cakes in the same way again.
Perspective(s), Laurent Binet (translated by Sam Taylor)
This is a murder mystery set in 16th-century Florence featuring prominent Renaissance artists. Jacopo da Pantormo is murdered, and the Duke of Florence tasks Giorgio Vasari with finding the killer and locating a scandalous, unauthorized painting of his daughter that was stolen from his palace. The story is told as a series of letters without following any particular chronology. Benvenuto Cellini turns out to be the thief (and responsible for a couple of deaths), but it was da Pantormo's killer that had me chortling: Michelangelo, roughly 80 years old, apparently travels from Rome to Florence overnight to prevent da Pantormo from committing suicide. da Pantormo severely injures himself, so Michelangelo stabs him through the heart with a chisel, then races back to Rome in time for a morning meeting with the pope. Ending aside, this was an entertaining read, although I could've done without the philosophy of art paragraphs.
Neferura, Malayna Evans
Evans is an Egyptologist, so this story was rich in period details about ancient Egypt. Neferura was the daughter of the pharaoh Hatshepsut and the half-sister of another pharaoh, Thutmose III. Very little is known about Neferura from historical records; Evans has her as a high priestess with a lot of religious duties. The court politics and allegiances weren't that interesting to me. The most interesting part was the all-women support network and the lives of women royal and servant. It's not as well written as Madeline Miller's Circe and not as fantastical as Vaishnavi Patel's Kaikeyi, but not a bad way to pass the time.
First contender for best fiction I read this year. This book was originally published in 1970; I wish that I'd known about it sooner. Cruz Smith is an Indigenous writer who imagines that the Native Americans defeated the United States Army and created their own nation (Indian Nation) in the middle of North America. Several factors contribute to this alternate outcome, listed from most to least important: all of the Native Americans worked together as a single military force; European powers facilitated the purchase of advanced weapons (some even from American companies) for the Native American troops; the U.S. was in a depression after the Civil War and unable to send more troops; the economic depression led to many Americans blaming the railroad barons (e.g., angry mobs destroyed rail stations and tracks and telegraph wires), which made communication and coordination among Army posts impossible; the European powers declined to lend money to the U.S. government; there was another politically separate entity of Mormon settlers based in and around Utah that was eventually absorbed into the Indian Nation. The U.S. is divided, a larger eastern part from the Mississippi River and east and then California in the west. [In this history, most of Texas remains with Mexico.] There's also a part of the book that is set in the late '60s--the U.S. is waging war in Vietnam, but it is also negotiating with the Indian Nation for more land because of overcrowding. Cruz Smith's Indian Nation seems unrealistic in a lot of ways, but the writing is strong and the viewpoint is unique. By chance I read most of this book on Indigenous People's Day.
Pym, Mat Johnson
Second contender. An extremely good novel that was published in 2015. Johnson takes Edgar Allan Poe's only novel, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, as a starting point for another fantastical adventure novel set mostly in Antarctica. Chris Jaynes is a literature professor and the only Black faculty member at a small college in upstate New York who does not get tenure. He buys the purported memoir of Dirk Peters, who was part of Arthur Pym's expedition to Antarctica, and recruits his cousin and his best friend to follow the Pym/Peters journey. There are also meditations on race, capitalism, and power/politics. Like a lot of Goodreads reviewers, I'll never think of Little Debbie snack cakes in the same way again.
a bit of a scare
Oct. 31st, 2025 10:21 pmWe took Mosey to the emergency vet hospital this evening because she had a bone stuck in her mouth, and I couldn't tell where it was stuck, if she was bleeding, etc. She was pawing at her mouth/jaw, whining, and breathing heavily; I was worried that she was going to injure herself more trying to dislodge the bone. Typically, when I take her to the vet, I give her a lot of sedative and anti-anxiety, but I couldn't give her pills with the bone stuck in there. Unfortunately, that meant Brent had to drive while I held her down. The closest emergency vet to us is, weirdly, in a stretch known mostly for bars and restaurants, so I got out with Mo and he went to find parking.
Mosey was, of course, freaked out by the hospital, and there were about three people trying to figure out what was going on. With all the poking and prodding (and Mosey trying to avoid them), the bone dislodged itself. They had to pry her mouth open to make sure there wasn't anything else stuck and that she wasn't bleeding anywhere; that was pretty hard to watch, but she did OK all things considered. They didn't charge me for the visit, so I made a donation to the hospital's foundation (which they say they use to help pet owners who can't pay).
At one point I mentioned to the staff that I had expected the hospital to be full of dogs who ate things they shouldn't on Halloween, and almost in unison they replied "that'll be later tonight."
Mosey was, of course, freaked out by the hospital, and there were about three people trying to figure out what was going on. With all the poking and prodding (and Mosey trying to avoid them), the bone dislodged itself. They had to pry her mouth open to make sure there wasn't anything else stuck and that she wasn't bleeding anywhere; that was pretty hard to watch, but she did OK all things considered. They didn't charge me for the visit, so I made a donation to the hospital's foundation (which they say they use to help pet owners who can't pay).
At one point I mentioned to the staff that I had expected the hospital to be full of dogs who ate things they shouldn't on Halloween, and almost in unison they replied "that'll be later tonight."
The National Guards are back. It was a nice couple of weeks of not worrying about getting shot in a Metro station.
I was trying to remember the authors Maeve66 suggested to me over the years, so I went to her Goodreads account. All of the titles are gone; her account is empty.
The last substantial rain we had was in August. The leaves are turning because it's dry, not because it's cold.
I did one thing in the yard over the weekend. The rosemary shrub is taking over the raised bed, so I dug a new hole for it. Ever since the foundation repair project, our yard has been solid clay, two feet deep. I guess it did relieve some of my frustrations to use a pickax. Maybe this coming weekend I can move a pair of volunteer pin oaks that are coming up too close to a magnolia tree.
I might try to get my COVID shot on Friday (already did the flu shot). That's about as much hope as I can muster.
I was trying to remember the authors Maeve66 suggested to me over the years, so I went to her Goodreads account. All of the titles are gone; her account is empty.
The last substantial rain we had was in August. The leaves are turning because it's dry, not because it's cold.
I did one thing in the yard over the weekend. The rosemary shrub is taking over the raised bed, so I dug a new hole for it. Ever since the foundation repair project, our yard has been solid clay, two feet deep. I guess it did relieve some of my frustrations to use a pickax. Maybe this coming weekend I can move a pair of volunteer pin oaks that are coming up too close to a magnolia tree.
I might try to get my COVID shot on Friday (already did the flu shot). That's about as much hope as I can muster.
the little thing
Oct. 17th, 2025 10:59 pmI wasn't in a great mood anyway, but I've definitely felt worse since learning that Maeve66 died on Tuesday. I was reading her entries from this year, and I was clearly in denial about how sick she was. We became friends in the wake of wouldprefernot2's cancer diagnosis and death, just over 20 years ago. In 2005 she expressed anguish at his death and the fact that they never met. Now, here I am, feeling similarly sad and adrift about losing her without ever meeting her. It's especially frustrating because I once drove from LA to the Bay Area to meet her and another LJer who was the point person and who ghosted us that day (actually I don't think we ever heard from him again). I didn't have Maeve66's phone number or email address and vice versa.
The other thing that gets me is that I had ordered flowers to be delivered to her. The company contracted with FedEx for the delivery. According to the tracking information, the first attempt to deliver was on October 8th. There was another attempt on the 10th. However, it seems that the only time the delivery person tried to contact either Maeve66 or me was on the third attempt, which was the 15th. I had a message on my phone saying that they couldn't get into the building and did I have an access code or another contact number for the recipient.
Maeve66 was gone, so I needed to cancel the delivery. There's no phone number to call FedEx on the tracking site. I tried searching the website and was directed to a chat bot, which said that it couldn't help and directed me to a different chat bot that also said it couldn't help. I then I had to confirm that I was willing to call a number twice before FedEx showed me a phone number. Of course, I had to navigate voice prompts first, but I did eventually get to a person. After I said that I needed to cancel the delivery, the rep gave me the same spiel that I'd already heard from the driver about not being able to get into the building. I said, not very kindly, that I understood the problem but wanted to cancel the order because the recipient had died. The rep was very apologetic and said that they would check on options. Apparently just canceling a delivery is not allowed? These flowers have to be half dead by now, so I didn't want to route them to Maeve66's family. Sometime next week, a dried bouquet of flowers will be delivered to my house.
Obviously this is not the most important thing about this situation, but I can't help wondering why the first and second delivery people didn't call anyone. By the time the deliverer actually gave a damn, it was too late. Why did I have to go through three different AI gatekeepers before talking to a human being? I guess AI is only going to get more pervasive from here out. My only consolation is that I think Maeve66 would forgive me and also find the saga funny.
The other thing that gets me is that I had ordered flowers to be delivered to her. The company contracted with FedEx for the delivery. According to the tracking information, the first attempt to deliver was on October 8th. There was another attempt on the 10th. However, it seems that the only time the delivery person tried to contact either Maeve66 or me was on the third attempt, which was the 15th. I had a message on my phone saying that they couldn't get into the building and did I have an access code or another contact number for the recipient.
Maeve66 was gone, so I needed to cancel the delivery. There's no phone number to call FedEx on the tracking site. I tried searching the website and was directed to a chat bot, which said that it couldn't help and directed me to a different chat bot that also said it couldn't help. I then I had to confirm that I was willing to call a number twice before FedEx showed me a phone number. Of course, I had to navigate voice prompts first, but I did eventually get to a person. After I said that I needed to cancel the delivery, the rep gave me the same spiel that I'd already heard from the driver about not being able to get into the building. I said, not very kindly, that I understood the problem but wanted to cancel the order because the recipient had died. The rep was very apologetic and said that they would check on options. Apparently just canceling a delivery is not allowed? These flowers have to be half dead by now, so I didn't want to route them to Maeve66's family. Sometime next week, a dried bouquet of flowers will be delivered to my house.
Obviously this is not the most important thing about this situation, but I can't help wondering why the first and second delivery people didn't call anyone. By the time the deliverer actually gave a damn, it was too late. Why did I have to go through three different AI gatekeepers before talking to a human being? I guess AI is only going to get more pervasive from here out. My only consolation is that I think Maeve66 would forgive me and also find the saga funny.
We only spent about a day and a half in Richmond this year. The folk festival lineup was underwhelming, and with Brent's unpredictable health and Mosey's neuroses it seemed safer to come back after a couple of nights. The other big change was that we took Amtrak instead of driving. The trip was longer (4 hours instead of closer to 3), but it was considerably less aggravating than driving and trying to find overnight parking in downtown Richmond. The train schedule was another reason we came back on Sunday; today there were only two trains heading to DC from Richmond--one around 6:30 a.m. and another around 6:30 p.m.
We saw four bands on Saturday: Dogo du Togo (West African highlife), No BS! Brass, Son Qba, and The Blackbyrds (jazz, R&B, funk). We discovered No BS! at the folk festival about 10 years ago, and it was very nice to see them again. They only had one set, and it was in an amphitheater that was separate from the rest of the festival. I had to check my bag because it was too large and not clear, and people couldn't bring in food or beverages (though both were for sale past security). It pretty much went against the entire spirit of a folk festival.
We stayed in the neighborhood of Shockhoe Bottom, and like most of downtown it has an interesting mix of new and old. Here's an old-fashioned sign that says "Somewhere" barely hanging onto a boarded-up building:
This building now houses a restaurant called Jew-fro, serving Jewish-African fusion cuisine:
Havana 59 has been around for over 30 years, but the building looks even older.
Sadly, I don't think that there are any hides or furs in this warehouse.
We saw four bands on Saturday: Dogo du Togo (West African highlife), No BS! Brass, Son Qba, and The Blackbyrds (jazz, R&B, funk). We discovered No BS! at the folk festival about 10 years ago, and it was very nice to see them again. They only had one set, and it was in an amphitheater that was separate from the rest of the festival. I had to check my bag because it was too large and not clear, and people couldn't bring in food or beverages (though both were for sale past security). It pretty much went against the entire spirit of a folk festival.
We stayed in the neighborhood of Shockhoe Bottom, and like most of downtown it has an interesting mix of new and old. Here's an old-fashioned sign that says "Somewhere" barely hanging onto a boarded-up building:
This building now houses a restaurant called Jew-fro, serving Jewish-African fusion cuisine:
Havana 59 has been around for over 30 years, but the building looks even older.
Sadly, I don't think that there are any hides or furs in this warehouse.
Today was the first time in months that I didn't see any National Guards on my way to or from work. [I did see some military police coming out of the subway station after my psychology appointment.] I honestly didn't think Trump/Miller would let them leave. I guess they have fights on their hands in other places, most notably Chicago.
I didn't throw a sandwich at them or otherwise engage with/provoke them. I mostly tried to pretend that they weren't there, but of course I tried to be extra cautious. If I was jogging in the hopes of getting the train pulling up to the platform, I'd slow down to a walk so that they wouldn't think I was attacking. I worried about how to get my farecard out of my pocket such that it was clear I wasn't reaching for a gun.
I didn't see any point in confronting National Guards or any other law enforcement, all of whom looked extremely bored. I wouldn't quite say that I felt sorry for them, but after hearing reports about where extra law enforcement were housed I decided to take the risk. [ETA: I have no idea what I was trying to say here. Thanks, Benadryl!]
Speaking of the military-industrial complex, one of the downtown Metro stations has had a series of defense technology ads from people looking to grab their share. They always have the company names in all capital letters, and the names are vaguely ominous. Most of the summer, the ads were for MANTECH. Despite seeing those ads, I don't have any idea what the company does. Another one is RAFT (definitely ominous). Today they expanded to multi-word names.
I didn't throw a sandwich at them or otherwise engage with/provoke them. I mostly tried to pretend that they weren't there, but of course I tried to be extra cautious. If I was jogging in the hopes of getting the train pulling up to the platform, I'd slow down to a walk so that they wouldn't think I was attacking. I worried about how to get my farecard out of my pocket such that it was clear I wasn't reaching for a gun.
I didn't see any point in confronting National Guards or any other law enforcement, all of whom looked extremely bored. I wouldn't quite say that I felt sorry for them, but after hearing reports about where extra law enforcement were housed I decided to take the risk. [ETA: I have no idea what I was trying to say here. Thanks, Benadryl!]
Speaking of the military-industrial complex, one of the downtown Metro stations has had a series of defense technology ads from people looking to grab their share. They always have the company names in all capital letters, and the names are vaguely ominous. Most of the summer, the ads were for MANTECH. Despite seeing those ads, I don't have any idea what the company does. Another one is RAFT (definitely ominous). Today they expanded to multi-word names.
September reading
Sep. 30th, 2025 10:05 pmI read three books during my flights to/from Chicago but only one more in the three weeks since. It's tough to sustain any kind of motivation.
These Opulent Days, Jacquie Pham
I'm surprised I gave this four stars on Goodreads; I can't say that I remember much about it now. The story follows four wealthy friends, one of whom is murdered. The novel switches perspectives and time periods constantly, and I do remember thinking that the story would probably be dull (albeit easier to follow) without such trickery. I did enjoy the historical detail about Vietnam in the 1920s, when it was still a French colony. OK, I just changed my rating to three stars and feel much better.
A Deadly Endeavor, Jenny Adams
Brent recently remarked that every piece of entertainment now has to be a franchise. You can't just have a story by itself. You need a universe, complete with prequels, sequels, and spin-offs featuring minor characters in the original. A lot of contemporary genre fictions is the same. This is my preamble to this book, which is the first of a series that absolutely doesn't need to be a series. A plucky, wealthy, modern heroine returns to her hometown of Philadelphia in the 1920s and investigates murders of young women, mostly servants. I admit I was not prepared for the macabre reveal--up until that point the book was about as light-hearted as a serial killer mystery can be.
Kingdom of No Tomorrow, Fabienne Josaphat
This avoided being a standard coming-of-age love story with its setting and characters. The protagonist is a Haitian-American public health student who is recruited to help with a free clinic run by the Black Panthers in 1968. She falls in love with one of the Panthers and moves with him to Chicago to grow their chapter. As many people note on Goodreads, this book is at its best when talking about Panther activities and the US government's reactions and considerably less interesting when focused on the love story.
The Witches of El Paso, Luis Jaramillo
This book has two of the common contemporary fiction hallmarks: the nonlinear chronology and the supernatural. There are three main time periods: the late 1700s, the late 1940s, and (more or less) modern times. There was some really lovely writing, and I was impressed that a man chose to write a book featuring almost all women characters. I also liked the elements of folklore and, of course, that the US-Mexico border is one of the motifs.
These Opulent Days, Jacquie Pham
I'm surprised I gave this four stars on Goodreads; I can't say that I remember much about it now. The story follows four wealthy friends, one of whom is murdered. The novel switches perspectives and time periods constantly, and I do remember thinking that the story would probably be dull (albeit easier to follow) without such trickery. I did enjoy the historical detail about Vietnam in the 1920s, when it was still a French colony. OK, I just changed my rating to three stars and feel much better.
A Deadly Endeavor, Jenny Adams
Brent recently remarked that every piece of entertainment now has to be a franchise. You can't just have a story by itself. You need a universe, complete with prequels, sequels, and spin-offs featuring minor characters in the original. A lot of contemporary genre fictions is the same. This is my preamble to this book, which is the first of a series that absolutely doesn't need to be a series. A plucky, wealthy, modern heroine returns to her hometown of Philadelphia in the 1920s and investigates murders of young women, mostly servants. I admit I was not prepared for the macabre reveal--up until that point the book was about as light-hearted as a serial killer mystery can be.
Kingdom of No Tomorrow, Fabienne Josaphat
This avoided being a standard coming-of-age love story with its setting and characters. The protagonist is a Haitian-American public health student who is recruited to help with a free clinic run by the Black Panthers in 1968. She falls in love with one of the Panthers and moves with him to Chicago to grow their chapter. As many people note on Goodreads, this book is at its best when talking about Panther activities and the US government's reactions and considerably less interesting when focused on the love story.
The Witches of El Paso, Luis Jaramillo
This book has two of the common contemporary fiction hallmarks: the nonlinear chronology and the supernatural. There are three main time periods: the late 1700s, the late 1940s, and (more or less) modern times. There was some really lovely writing, and I was impressed that a man chose to write a book featuring almost all women characters. I also liked the elements of folklore and, of course, that the US-Mexico border is one of the motifs.
three days in Chicago
Sep. 9th, 2025 09:56 pmI went to Chicago last week for a work conference. The conference is basically (but not officially) run by the Journal of the American Medical Association, which perhaps explains the swanky location: the only Swissotel in North America. There are reminders of Switzerland everywhere: the conference rooms are named after Swiss cities, the bath products tout Swiss herbs, etc. I half expected a Lindt truffle on the bed pillow.
The hotel was shaped like a triangle. Here's the floor plan:
It was like a Toblerone bar set on one short end. Here's what it looked like from the outside:
I got really lucky with the weather and the room, which was on the 37th floor. The view:
The highlights of the trip were seeing friends for dinner each night. The conference was fine, a bit intense (8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. for two days and then 8 to 5 the last day). Lots and lots of stuff about AI in scientific publishing, only some of which was interesting. One thing that was nice is that we're starting with a new vendor, and the CEO himself (for some reason) was at the booth in the exhibitor hall. We've been on some Zoom calls together, but I introduced myself anyway. We had a really nice chat, talking a little bit about ourselves and how we ended up where we are. It occurred to me that I have worked for three CEOs in the 20+ years I've worked for my organization, and never have I had a one-to-one conversation with any of the CEOs, let alone a casual little chat about places I've lived and would like to visit. [Yes, I suspect that the CEO was very bored to invite me to sit with him for a spell; let me have my moment.]
The hotel was shaped like a triangle. Here's the floor plan:
It was like a Toblerone bar set on one short end. Here's what it looked like from the outside:
I got really lucky with the weather and the room, which was on the 37th floor. The view:
The highlights of the trip were seeing friends for dinner each night. The conference was fine, a bit intense (8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. for two days and then 8 to 5 the last day). Lots and lots of stuff about AI in scientific publishing, only some of which was interesting. One thing that was nice is that we're starting with a new vendor, and the CEO himself (for some reason) was at the booth in the exhibitor hall. We've been on some Zoom calls together, but I introduced myself anyway. We had a really nice chat, talking a little bit about ourselves and how we ended up where we are. It occurred to me that I have worked for three CEOs in the 20+ years I've worked for my organization, and never have I had a one-to-one conversation with any of the CEOs, let alone a casual little chat about places I've lived and would like to visit. [Yes, I suspect that the CEO was very bored to invite me to sit with him for a spell; let me have my moment.]
August reading
Sep. 1st, 2025 11:34 pmI started off strong but then got bogged down in a book, Kitsch: The World of Bad Taste, which has more philosophy than I was expecting. I should have finished it during the week off, because it's too much to read after work.
The Life of Herod the Great, Zora Neale Hurston
Hurston was working on this book when she died, so it has the roughness you might expect from an unfinished work. Hurston portrays Herod as a nearly perfect person: an exemplary athlete, soldier, scholar, and king. She wanted to correct the Christian narrative of Herod as a mentally unstable tyrant (e.g., there is no evidence for the so-called massacre of innocents during his reign). Hurston did a lot of research to write this novel, and the best parts of the book were about life in Judea in this period (Herod, as written, was dull in the way that perfection often is). I'll have to read her other historical fiction, Moses, Man of the Mountain.
Babylonia, Costanza Casati
Another historical fiction, this one about a queen, Semiramis, the only female ruler of Assyria. It was another good escape from reality, although the battle scenes were gruesome and the love triangle between Semiramis and two half-brothers, Onnes and Ninus, seemed a bit far-fetched. Still, it was an absorbing story with a strong female lead and a change of pace from more common Greek mythology. [There seems to be no end to the retellings of The Odyssey etc.; Casati's first book was Clytemnestra]
The Black Swan Mystery, Tetsuya Ayukawa (translated by Bryan Karetnyk)
I don't know whether it counts as noir, but there was definitely a bleak undercurrent in this murder mystery set in postwar Japan. I enjoyed it but was surprised that it ends abruptly. The detectives offer their theory of who did it and why, the story briefly switches back to the alleged killer meeting someone for lunch, and the end.
The Life of Herod the Great, Zora Neale Hurston
Hurston was working on this book when she died, so it has the roughness you might expect from an unfinished work. Hurston portrays Herod as a nearly perfect person: an exemplary athlete, soldier, scholar, and king. She wanted to correct the Christian narrative of Herod as a mentally unstable tyrant (e.g., there is no evidence for the so-called massacre of innocents during his reign). Hurston did a lot of research to write this novel, and the best parts of the book were about life in Judea in this period (Herod, as written, was dull in the way that perfection often is). I'll have to read her other historical fiction, Moses, Man of the Mountain.
Babylonia, Costanza Casati
Another historical fiction, this one about a queen, Semiramis, the only female ruler of Assyria. It was another good escape from reality, although the battle scenes were gruesome and the love triangle between Semiramis and two half-brothers, Onnes and Ninus, seemed a bit far-fetched. Still, it was an absorbing story with a strong female lead and a change of pace from more common Greek mythology. [There seems to be no end to the retellings of The Odyssey etc.; Casati's first book was Clytemnestra]
The Black Swan Mystery, Tetsuya Ayukawa (translated by Bryan Karetnyk)
I don't know whether it counts as noir, but there was definitely a bleak undercurrent in this murder mystery set in postwar Japan. I enjoyed it but was surprised that it ends abruptly. The detectives offer their theory of who did it and why, the story briefly switches back to the alleged killer meeting someone for lunch, and the end.
