Reading Wednesday

Jul. 2nd, 2025 07:35
troisoiseaux: (reading 6)
[personal profile] troisoiseaux
Continued my nostalgic re-reads of 2000s middle-grade/YA novels with I'd Tell You I Love You But Then I'd Have To Kill You by Ally Carter, the first book in the Gallagher Girls series, set at an all-girls boarding school for TEEN SPIES. As you can imagine, this was my jam in middle school; however, my primary emotion on re-reading this book as an adult was second-hand embarrassment, since main character Cammie (a superspy nepo baby, whose mom is the headmistress of the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women and whose dad died tragically on a top-secret mission) mostly puts the lessons learned in her Covert Operations class - that one man's trash is another's treasure trove of the first guy's secrets, how to build and maintain a cover story, etc. - to practical, if ill-advised, use by.... well, stalking some cute normie boy and then sneaking out to go on dates him. (I know, I know, this is a YA novel, but COMPLETE waste of an elite spy education, if you ask me.) The climactic sequence where Cammie and friends take their CoveOps practical final - a late-night heist, of course - was fun, though.

Just One Thing (02 July 2025)

Jul. 2nd, 2025 09:22
nanila: me (Default)
[personal profile] nanila in [community profile] awesomeers
It's challenge time!

Comment with Just One Thing you've accomplished in the last 24 hours or so. It doesn't have to be a hard thing, or even a thing that you think is particularly awesome. Just a thing that you did.

Feel free to share more than one thing if you're feeling particularly accomplished! Extra credit: find someone in the comments and give them props for what they achieved!

Nothing is too big, too small, too strange or too cryptic. And in case you'd rather do this in private, anonymous comments are screened. I will only unscreen if you ask me to.

Go!

Problem-Solving

Jul. 2nd, 2025 02:19
ysabetwordsmith: Cats playing with goldfish (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
New study backs up 'sleeping on it,' suggesting naps promote creative problem-solving

All groups improved in the dot-sorting test after their nap, but 85.7% of those who achieved the first deeper sleep phase — called N2 sleep — had the breakthrough.

Hard Things

Jul. 2nd, 2025 02:17
ysabetwordsmith: Cats playing with goldfish (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Life is full of things which are hard or tedious or otherwise unpleasant that need doing anyhow. They help make the world go 'round, they improve skills, and they boost your sense of self-respect. But doing them still kinda sucks. It's all the more difficult to do those things when nobody appreciates it. Happily, blogging allows us to share our accomplishments and pat each other on the back.

What are some of the hard things you've done recently? What are some hard things you haven't gotten to yet, but need to do? Is there anything your online friends could do to make your hard things a little easier?

Whales

Jul. 2nd, 2025 02:13
ysabetwordsmith: Cats playing with goldfish (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Killer whales attempt to feed people in first-ever sightings: 'Represents altruism'

Among their own whale circles, they have long shared their prey with one another, but in a new study, recorded over the course of the last two decades, wild orcas were spotted trying to share their food with human beings.

These wild whales, on 34 occasions, across four oceans, were documented approaching humans on their own, dropping a fresh kill in front of the people, and waiting for a response.



The polite thing to do is accept it, and if you have anything suitable, swap something back. Cetaceans love the hell out of human item drops. A sturdy beach toy should go over well.  Treat this as a first-contact situation; be cautious but aware that you are dealing with a sophont of another species.

ysabetwordsmith: Cats playing with goldfish (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Sinful televangelist Jimmy Swaggart has passed away

... I just kinda want to pass Lucifer a big bag of popcorn and a big shaker of Mexican spice blend.  He's gonna need it.

Start July as you mean to go on

Jul. 1st, 2025 23:10
sholio: outline of Alaska with aurora colors (Alaska aurora)
[personal profile] sholio
Technically this was yesterday, but I climbed a hill and had an eagle fly past me. (The hill is the Bodenburg Butte in Palmer, AK.)

Photo from a high vantage point, looking down on farms and fields stretching to blue mountains with their tops covered in clouds. Small figure of an eagle is visible against the clouds.

I realize the eagle is more like a dot, but if you've tried to take a quick photo of a bird, this is without zoom (I was just trying to snap a fast shot without completely losing the experience of having an eagle flying in front of me) so it is actually very close! After it flew past, I turned around and two teenage guys were standing above me, having just descended from the top and watched it too. "Sick," one of them said in obvious delight, and we nodded at each other.

I'm down in Southcentral doing Mom Things. Mom has been moved out of the rental where she was living since last August, and she was supposed to go home via helicopter today, but the weather was a problem. But that's why I reserved two extra days at the Airbnb beforehand, just in case. Tomorrow we try again! She was very respectful of my space today - I think she recognized that I was planning on having the evening to myself tonight and it didn't happen - and I wrote both fanfic and original fiction, and took a long walk to sort some plot things out in my head. Thursday I go home, and perhaps drive the Denali Highway on my way, if the wildfire smoke isn't too bad.

Connexions (17)

Jul. 2nd, 2025 08:06
the_comfortable_courtesan: image of a fan c. 1810 (Default)
[personal profile] the_comfortable_courtesan
Worse than a shock

'Twould be hard to say what was the crowning experience of this visit! Mayhap not merely going see Miss Addington play Cleopatra from a fine comfortable box, but being invited to call on her in her dressing room after!

And had done exceeding well in making connexions for the chaps: there was Averdale, had been very gladly offered a post as secretary by Jimsie, and once had completed his term at Oxford, would proceed to join the Trembournes for the summer at Worblewood. Thornton was all enthusiasm about the prospect of tutoring the Yeomans orphans, and had already commenced upon certain commissions in reviewing. Wood had been invited to spend the summer assisting in the work of the parish at St Wilfrid’s, with the possibility of eventually being appointed a curate. And Smithers was going around quite in a daze having been offered a pupillage in Mr Geoffrey Merrett’s chambers.

Then, as they were contemplating their last few days, here came Mr Gordon Marshall, that was married to the governess at Yeomans, and a reporter for the Lowndes Press, and also, they discovered, the brother of that sensation, Clo Marshall, offering that he could arrange for 'em to attend her performance at the Beaufoyle Arms Song and Supper Rooms!

They were returning from this unanticipated treat in great spirits, to discover most unwonted Cretia and Mr Grigson waiting in the hall, looking very sombre, what looked like a telegram in Grigson’s hand.

His first thought was that Father had died.

Oh Lord – 'twas not somewhat had come to Myo? One understood her condition was delicate.

O Grinnie, cried Cretia, coming up and falling upon his neck, would you believe it? Here is Talshaw, gone fallen down a flight of stairs in a drunken fit and broke his neck.

The fellows all made sympathetic murmurs, and Wood said, quite saw that they should not intrude upon the family at this time, would be about their departure the morn, at which all nodded, and Mr Grigson went over doubtless to discuss the practicalities.

O God, thought Peregrine, patting Cretia’s shoulder. Sure they had none of 'em been particularly fond of their elder brother, but ‘twas a shock. And worse than a shock.

Now he was the heir.

Grigson came over from seeing the fellows off to their beds, laid a hand on the shoulder not occupied by Cretia, and said, Lord Peregrine was entire welcome to stay here while the formalities were put in hand – had no doubt the authorities at the college would be entirely understanding, would send one of his confidential clerks about the matter –

Excellent fellow!

That is above and beyond kind – am still in shock

Quite so. The best thing would be to go to bed and have a good night’s rest.

Cretia squeezed his hands, as he managed to detach himself and walk with not too much stumbling to the staircase.

These violent delights have violent ends, he thought, as he blew out the candle, and thought that surely, he felt so exhausted, he would sleep like the dead.

But did not. His thoughts were a clamorous agitation. Indeed there had been no particular fraternal affection 'twixt 'em. But he had not in the least been an envious younger brother, resentful of the eldest’s position. He had been exceedingly glad not to be the heir – to be able to pursue a different path –

He groaned. Doubtless his father was already plotting, making plans – one might hope that they would be checked somewhat by the conventions of mourning – surely it would look extremely vulgar to be displaying him about Society with Talshaw barely cold –

All he had desired was to have the quiet life of an Oxford fellow, pursuing scholarship, alleviated by a little recreation in Town made possible by the independence good old Brackley had provided him –

Grinnie sat up. Independence.

He had a modest competence of his own. His father could not flourish the power of the purse-strings over him. He did not have to knuckle down and comply with his demands. It would be – he gulped – uncomfortable perchance to point that out, but far less uncomfortable than being paraded about as a Marquess’s heir, ripe for marriage.

He had no great desire to live lavishly – but already came to an apprehension that Mr Brackley had left him comfortable, and that his enterprize with Roberts and Wilson was doing exceeding well, along with Mr Grigson’s sound advice on investments. He was no poor scholar of Oxenforde, but a gentleman of independent means.

His mouth went to a wry twist. From stray comments of Iffling’s and Grigson’s, very like his father would be touching him for assistance!

Feeling his mind a good deal more at rest, he lay down again, and was shortly asleep.

The following day saw off his friends, that clasped his hand and grasped his shoulder, and said, was there anything they might do, and expressed their gratitude to their host and hostess.

Assured 'em that he intended to be remet with 'em in college, in due course.

Then there was a deal of to-do over mourning-wear – and cards – and waiting upon hearing about the funeral –

And another telegram from Father to say would call the morrow to see Lord Peregrine –

He had already opened somewhat of his intentions to Grigson and Cretia. Grigson gave his small smile, and said, thought the best place for this interview would be the library – no, would not in the least be displacing Miss Jupp –

Not in the least, said Cretia with a sigh, sure there is a deal of correspondence upon my hands – apologies for occasions I must now decline to attend – replies to the condolences that have already started arriving – and you know, Grinnie, we must go call at Trembourne House this very day.

Quite so, he responded, we should certainly not delay going to Mama and Myo.

So here they were at Trembourne House, and receiving condolences from Lady Undersedge – her husband being in the Nuttenford mining districts – and Lady Eleanor. What an exemplary woman was Lady Undersedge – Averdale had taken her in great admiration, quoted A perfect woman, nobly planned, to warn, to comfort and command, one might imagine her the lady in some castle of the Middle Ages, ruling it and defending it whilst her lord was off crusading – it must be entirely the best thing for Mama and Myo to be here.

Mama sighed and said, it was the way of things that she had had so little to do with Talshaw after his infancy – much more so than with you and Lucie – being reared as the heir – but –

She appeared about to say more and then glanced over at Myo and seemed to think better of it.

Myo was looking in health – quite blooming, in fact – Jimsie very attentive –

They hoped that he would come to Worblewood in the summer? They would be very quiet there, and that splendid chap Chilfer was going to come about excavating the Roman villa. Surely there could be no objection?

A very attractive prospect!

It was entirely less heavy a rencontre than he had anticipated.

But he did not look forward to seeing his father.

It has been a most strategic notion of Grigson to suggest the library; putting the encounter as 'twere on Grinnie’s ground. Surrounded by his old friends arrayed upon the shelves.

He was already there, perusing Rasselas, when his father was shown in. He stood up and bowed. Did not expect any manifestations of emotion – no handclasp, no embrace – and was proved correct. His father nodded. Peregrine.

That chair is the most comfortable, he said, going to ring for a footman to fetch – what would his father desire at this time o’ day?

Ah. Brandy. That would account for that unhealthy flush – sure he was looking his years! – Grinnie nodded to the footman and desired coffee for himself.

His father looked around and commenced upon crying up the library at Roughton Arching, that had been writ up in The Speculum – Grinnie doubted his father often visited it but of course that was quite the accolade.

Once they were settled with brandy and coffee, and appropriate sentiments exchanged, he decided to take the Nelson line and sail straight ahead by declaring his intention to complete his final term at Oxford. Somewhat to his surprize, his father conceded this without too much grumbling – showed a very meritorious desire to finish what he had started, a proper seriousness.

No doubt that was a contrast to his late brother, everything by starts and nothing long.

He would, alas, have to decline the fellowship – but was coming about to perceive that one might pursue learning beyond college walls – from the corner of his eye he could see, piled on one of the small tables, the various classical works Vicky Jupp was at present studying. This chap Chilfer sounded entirely up to the mark in matters of archaeology – had not he and his set only lately quite basked in the erudition of Mr MacDonald and Sir Jacob Samuels? Was there not that quite shining example, Her Grace of Mulcaster? Offgrange was noted for his studies in botany - No, he need not renounce scholarship.

There was, of course, the proposition that he should spend the summer at Roughton Arching, a prospect that had filled Grinnie’s heart with positively Gothick gloom. Fortunately he was able to advance his invitation to Worblewood – will be living very quiet – Trembourne still in mourning for his father – Myo in a delicate condition – understand they have also invited Lucie –

His father slowly nodded. And you may ride over to Roughton Arching to meet with the stewards &C – there will fellows coming from Firkins over various matters –

Well, that could not be avoided, he supposed. Provided they did not arrive with a marriage contract ready drawn up! For while one saw that one would have to wed in due course, now that one was not going to live the life of a celibate scholar, one should like to look about a little first. Was it only so that one did not make some terrible mistake and be condemned to the cat and dog life that Rina had with Iffling.

These matters settled, his father did not linger.

It was only after his departure that Peregrine realized that his father had said naught about money and thus must still be in ignorance that he was a young man of means. Mayhap just as well.


tamaranth: me, in the sun (Default)
[personal profile] tamaranth
2025/101: The Silence of the Girls — Pat Barker
I was no longer the outward and visible sign of Agamemnon’s power and Achilles’ humiliation. No, I’d become something altogether more sinister: I was the girl who’d caused the quarrel. Oh, yes, I’d caused it – in much the same way, I suppose, as a bone is responsible for a dogfight. [loc. 1596]

This is the story of Briseis, a princess of Lyrnessus who was captured when the Achaeans sacked the city. Her husband and brothers were slaughtered, and she was given to Achilles as a prize. Later, Agamemnon's prize Chryseis was returned to her father, a priest of Apollo: plague had broken out and Apollo, the god of plague, needed to be appeased. Agamemnon complained about the loss of his property: Briseis was taken from Achilles and given to Agamemnon to replace Chryseis, and Achilles then sulked in his tent and refused to fight.

Of course the story is quite different from Briseis' point of view.Read more... )

mortmere: (Default)
[personal profile] mortmere in [community profile] ds_noticeboard
Oh dear, I had everything ready waiting for the turn of the month and then I practically slept trough yesterday, Canada Day of all days! Anyway, June is history, here's the art:
 
 
ARTIST: capispaghetti
 
RayK and Fraser
 
A RayV meme
 
 
ARTIST: gjdraws
 
A documentary by Diefenbaker (Fraser/RayV)
 
 
ARTIST: look_turtles
 
Love Amidst The Cherry Blossom (fic cover)
 

ARTIST: mariemeetsmisery
 
Ray K’s outfit in I Coulda Been A Defendant
 
 
ARTIST: mortmere
 
[ART] Lupine Bond (F/K)
 
[ART] A Smart Animal Trying to Make a Living in Tough Conditions (F/K)

Jeremy Greer

Jul. 1st, 2025 21:25
radiantfracture: (Orion)
[personal profile] radiantfracture
Of all the things to be grieving right now, this is a weird personal parasocial one. You have been warned.

Jeremy Greer )

§rf§
sonofgodzilla: hey yo, it's d4dj (kurumi on stage)
[personal profile] sonofgodzilla
I am going to lay it out on the table so there can be no misunderstanding: I’m not going to write about every member of the overseas sister groups. I just don’t know enough about these groups, and, several years in, I think they are big enough to have their own fans, their own followings, and I don’t think I could really justice when talking about that, however, AKB48’s sixty-sixth single is going to be with us in a few months, and with that comes the long overdue inclusion of members from the further afield overseas groups in the senbatsu as part of the anniversary celebrations so it would be remise of me not to talk about those members. tl;dr Shania Gracia.

Gracia!


JKT48’s third generation debuted in 2014 about a month after my favourite member of the group, Cindy, left the group under a cloud. Arriving as a trainee, Gracia was promoted alongside her peers to Team T when the group was formed in January a year later, Harugon being appointed as captain of the team as the group’s longest serving member at that time. In mid-2016, Gracia appeared in the senbatsu for Mae Shika Mukanee (Hanya Lihat Ke Depan) before the group’s shuffle event in September that saw her join Team KIII.

JKT’s teams have a history of being disbanded and reformed, a practice that feels a little unsettling to me as Team T presently has no members at all in 2025. I don’t think this suggests that we’re going to see AKB move away from the generation system any time soon, yet I could also see management changing course for this kind of thing after the anniversary.

This speedrunning of JKT history and of Gracia’s time thus far in the group possibly fails to take in the extent of her popularity as it feels like she is a big deal in Jakarta with notable celebrities amongst the coterie of her fans and birthday wishes from former politicians. Although the former third generation is presently down to just two members—Gracia and Feni Fitriyanti, who is on hiatus as of August, and whom we probably should talk about at some point due to QUADLIPS, a sort of international UNLAME that AKS rolled out last year—it feels very much like their introduction was the beginning of JKT48 gaining their own identity with Gracia’s being very much an important factor in that process.

Having gone from captain of KIII in 2020 to presently acting as the captain of the group as a whole, it feels like AKS are banking on both Gracia and Feni in the hopes that their popularity in Indonesia will translate into popularity in Japan.

I don’t know, friends! At the time of writing this, I am literally second-guessing what will happen with the sixty-sixth single and how that release will set the stage for AKB in the future. Gracia continues to rank in the senbatsu during JKT’s general elections, and she has continued to appear with regularity on releases since 2016. Like Feni, in terms of where Gracia is as an idol, it feels like the only options left for her in future are either graduation or international success, whichever comes first.

(no subject)

Jul. 1st, 2025 21:01
ursamajor: Tajel on geeks (geeks: love them)
[personal profile] ursamajor
When [livejournal.com profile] belladonna shares a tweet that got screencapped and put up on Insta:

@ madisontayt_: imagining a vegan who won't drink nyc's tap water because of the microscopic shrimp
@ TheWappleHouse: The what now


and I was like "Yeah! There was this whole thing about NYC's tap water possibly being not kosher because of copepods in the water supply a few years back. Which might've meant that NYC bagels, whose lauded taste and texture were credited to the tap water used to boil them, were potentially treyf. But then other rabbis weighed in and said as long as the proportion of these microscopic crustaceans was less than 1/60th of the total volume, it was okay by the principle of בטל בשישים (bitul b'shishim/beteil beshishim), thank you Shabot6000."



... and then I realized "a few years back" was 21 years ago.

Today's Smoothie

Jul. 1st, 2025 22:54
ysabetwordsmith: Cats playing with goldfish (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today we made a smoothie with:

1 cup orange juice
1 cup Brown Cow vanilla yogurt
1 banana
1/2 cup Great Value Mixed Fruit (pineapple, sliced strawberries, mango, peaches)
1/2 cup ice

The result is slightly thick, a pale peach color, with a nice orange-tropical flavor -- almost reminds me of a dreamsicle.  It'd be good with some coconut; there's another tropical mix with that but it's not what we have at the moment.

Atsumi Tanezaki

Jul. 1st, 2025 20:25
lovelyangel: (Konata Burst)
[personal profile] lovelyangel
Today I Learned... that Atsumi Tanezaki is amazing! (Also: Her Wikipedia Entry.) I confess I’ve been doing a poor job of keeping up with star seiyuu in recent years. (I used to know all the greats from the 80s, 90s, and 2000s.) I did not know that this one actress is responsible for the voices of Chise in The Ancient Magus’ Bride, Frieren in Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Anya Forger in Spy x Family, Uo-chan in Fruits Basket, Murasaki in Grisaia: Phantom Trigger, Tinasha in Unnamed Memory, and Vivy in Vivy - Fluorite Eye’s Song – among dozens and dozens of other notable roles.

She was brought to my attention as she has a medical issue which is causing her to Cut Back on Work. She seems irreplaceable for numerous shows.
musesfool: a loaf of bread (staff of life)
[personal profile] musesfool
Last night I watched a cute movie on Netflix called Nonnas about that restaurant on Staten Island that hires grandmas as chefs. Lorraine Bracco, Brenda Vaccaro, Talia Shire, and Susan Sarandon play the nonnas, and Vince Vaughn plays the guy opening the restaurant. It's kind of a nice mellow detox from The Bear in terms of a bunch of Italian-Americans yelling at each other in a restaurant kitchen. *g* Plus a really horrifying rendition of capuzelle, which is a roasted (or baked?) sheep's head, which is one of those dishes I try to forget knowing about. Anyway, the restaurant still exists, and now it has grandmas from all different backgrounds who cook there (a review of the real restaurant).

Today was my Monday, and tomorrow is my Friday at work. I could get used to a 2 day work week!

*

clamp / median / range

Jul. 2nd, 2025 02:45
fanf: (Default)
[personal profile] fanf

https://dotat.at/@/2025-07-02-cmp.html

Here are a few tangentially-related ideas vaguely near the theme of comparison operators.

Read more... )

All the tea in China.

Jul. 1st, 2025 20:48
hannah: (Zach and Claire - pickle_icons)
[personal profile] hannah
It was such a slow first day, midway through the afternoon, I was being paid to sit there and read. It won't be like that every day - not even other days this week - and even if it doesn't get repeated, I can savor having had it for a little while.

So far, it's a front desk job like all front desk jobs: phone calls, emails, appointments, office supplies. People called, I called them back. Documents were scanned into the computer and copies were made. The clients were largely punctual and there's no music playing. While I doubt I can get away with headphones or a radio, there's a fan I may use for white noise to make the periods of sitting around, waiting for more nothing to happen, a little easier to get through without having to fall back on monetary compensation. Even if I got through a large chunk of some reading today.

Though I suppose longhand writing notes are always an option. If I remember to bring the right notebooks tomorrow.

Daily Check-in

Jul. 1st, 2025 18:07
starwatcher: Western windmill, clouds in background, trees around base. (Default)
[personal profile] starwatcher in [community profile] fandom_checkin
 
This is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Tuesday, July 1, to midnight on Wednesday, July 2. (8pm Eastern Time).

Poll #33314 Daily Check-in
Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 20

How are you doing?

I am OK.
9 (45.0%)

I am not OK, but don't need help right now.
11 (55.0%)

I could use some help.
0 (0.0%)

How many other humans live with you?

I am living single.
8 (40.0%)

One other person.
9 (45.0%)

More than one other person.
3 (15.0%)




Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.
 

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