Okay, in which Chad does, but I link to it, so I'm just as indulgent.
Edit: the Pip upon reading: "This is so sappy, I hate it."
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 11
+1 (thumbs-up, I see you, etc.)?
big backlog
Apr. 2nd, 2019 05:10 pmI was busy! But now I get to wander around mentally singing "I'm freeeee!" a la Elsa. And also, err, start our household taxes and do a lot of laundry. Minor details!
A kid anecdote I told elsewhere on social media when it happened:
Me: time to get up!
The Pip: tell me something I don't know.
Me: The square root of 81 is 9.
The Pip: I knew THAT.
Me: New York does not impose franchise tax on certain 501(c)(3) corporations.
The Pip: I have no idea what you just said.
Me: Something you didn't know! So get up!
And here's a video of a marble run the kids and I improvised last night out of a pretty lousy kit. Design mostly by SteelyKid, because she has spatial abilities and engineering instincts and I do not.
Have a bunch of links:
I saw this cover and I suddenly had a burning ambition to learn to write fiction, sell a novel, and have my publisher get Kevin Wada to do a cover. Since that will literally never happen, enjoy his Steve/Peggy/Bucky art.
Look at this dog's face!
Also look at this couple's faces. I would like a million stories about them, please, and also to be the one on the left.
I don't understand some of eShakti's design choices, I really don't.
This is old but timely again: imagine what we could have had for the Good Omens adaptation.
Commentary track by the Spider-man: Into the Spider-Verse animators!
Stashing this Ken Liu post on trying to learn about China by reading translated Chinese SF for future reference.
Slate provides Everything You Wanted to Know About the Two-Wombed Woman Who Gave Birth Twice in 26 Days.
I really like this picture of Charlie leading two puppies.
Congratulations to all the Hugo nominees I know! File 770 has links to the works.
( Two Avengers: Endgame thoughts based on teasers )
Finally, io9 has a big piece on Farscape which reminds me that I watched a few episodes several years ago and just never kept going. That was long ago enough that I'd probably have to start over; so is there a spot in S1 that people would recommend I start at, or episodes in S1 that I should skip? (Admittedly I may just need to not watch in the middle of the night while up with a very small child, which I'd forgotten was my previous mode until I checked the tag, but still.)
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 15
+1 (thumbs-up, I see you, etc.)?
Strapping sticks to feet, links, etc.
Feb. 4th, 2019 06:56 pmI was going to write something about the kids taking up skiing, but Chad beat me to it. (I am too uncoordinated to take up an activity that involves strapping sticks to my feet and, more importantly, too old to do something that involves falling down a lot. The Pip can fall down every five minutes and bounce right back up without complaint, I really really cannot. Even though downhill looks like a lot more fun than cross-country.)
This comic is super-cute and then I laughed so loud at the added caption that I startled the dog.
I don't even go here but it's really nice to see Anthony Rapp as part of this Rent/Star Trek parody? (My ear's not very good but I think maybe some of those high notes at the end were a little challenging? Still. It's adorable and will only feed my current generalized Rent earworm, post-"live" broadcast. (Which I recorded but did not watch when it transpired that it was 90% a dress rehearsal.))
Finally, some years ago I gave up football on the grounds of fuck the NFL, and I have to admit that it's kind of nice to have thereby neatly avoided the question of whether I still wanted to root for the Pats.
scenes from a zoo trip
Dec. 18th, 2017 10:48 pmWe did our annual mid-December trip to visit my mom & her husband in Florida, and their Christmas gift to us was a trip to Tampa's zoo, including a behind the scenes tour. The Pip got a little antsy during the more logistical sections, because he is six, but I found it all very interesting. And in more kid-friendly happenings, we:
1) scritched a rhino (such hard skin!);
2) witnessed the rather amazing quantities of bodily waste that an elephant can produce (literally, the sound effect was "splat"; I will spare you the picture);
3) fed a giraffe, well, the kids did anyway: one big leaf of lettuce just sucked in whole;
4) watched elephants play with Christmas trees decorated with produce as an enrichment activity, including one who just picked up an entire tree and carried it around upside-down.
So that was pretty great.
Here's SteelyKid mugging for the camera and the Pip contemplating life while brushing a goat.
(Yes, I completely failed at everything DW again for . . . many weeks, idek. Hi! Sorry!)
1) scritched a rhino (such hard skin!);
2) witnessed the rather amazing quantities of bodily waste that an elephant can produce (literally, the sound effect was "splat"; I will spare you the picture);
3) fed a giraffe, well, the kids did anyway: one big leaf of lettuce just sucked in whole;
4) watched elephants play with Christmas trees decorated with produce as an enrichment activity, including one who just picked up an entire tree and carried it around upside-down.
So that was pretty great.
Here's SteelyKid mugging for the camera and the Pip contemplating life while brushing a goat.
(Yes, I completely failed at everything DW again for . . . many weeks, idek. Hi! Sorry!)
Yuletide and bears
Oct. 18th, 2017 08:05 amSteelyKid made teddy-bear-pipe-cleaner swaps [*] for her Girl Scouts bridging ceremony last night, which she was justly proud of because she'd figured out a better way to make them that didn't involve cutting up the pipe cleaners, and she distributed them by running up to people, sticking out her full hands, and saying, "Bears!"
Which made me laugh every time, thinking of friends writing Yuletide.
Anyway, her swaps were a big hit, and if you need a Yuletide beta and you think I might know your fandom, hit me up even if it's not on the spreadsheet. Comments are screened.
[*] Any kind of little craft on a safety pin that you can trade.
Which made me laugh every time, thinking of friends writing Yuletide.
Anyway, her swaps were a big hit, and if you need a Yuletide beta and you think I might know your fandom, hit me up even if it's not on the spreadsheet. Comments are screened.
[*] Any kind of little craft on a safety pin that you can trade.
the kids were playing chess tonight
Oct. 5th, 2017 10:51 pmand SteelyKid, playing black, has a very specific defensive philosophy she's imparting to the Pip:
( dunno if this image will permanently embed )
(or view on google photos)
Edit: over breakfast, literally all they did was move pieces back and forth behind their defensive lines. I mentioned that at some point, someone would have to attempt to threaten the other's king, but they just shrugged at me. I find this hilarious.
( dunno if this image will permanently embed )
(or view on google photos)
Edit: over breakfast, literally all they did was move pieces back and forth behind their defensive lines. I mentioned that at some point, someone would have to attempt to threaten the other's king, but they just shrugged at me. I find this hilarious.
So the Pip started kindergarten today (SteelyKid started third grade on Tuesday), and we got a picture of them hugging me while waiting for the bus to match last year's.
THEY ARE SO HUGE.
( photographic proof )
Kindergarten seems to have gone well; he made a delightful self-portrait, and he was cheerful though very very tired this evening. (SteelyKid's an old hand at this now and is also doing great.)
THEY ARE SO HUGE.
( photographic proof )
Kindergarten seems to have gone well; he made a delightful self-portrait, and he was cheerful though very very tired this evening. (SteelyKid's an old hand at this now and is also doing great.)
(Or why there will be no kid developmental update post tonight, despite the Pip turning 4 on Saturday.)
- SteelyKid has strep.
+ SteelyKid gets to stop the loathsome antibiotic she was taking for something else (four times a day!) and take bubble-gum flavored amoxycillin that she actually likes.
- I'm allergic to amoxycillin so we get to watch her for that.
+ She's been in a really great energetic mood since just before dinner...
- ...but still needs to stay home tomorrow, which actually puts a bigger dent in Chad's productivity than if she were a sleepy lump on the couch.
+ The Pip is four, so it's time to do bedtime just like his sister: one of us sits on the bed for two songs, sets a timer, comes back when timer beeps to check up.
- Crying. Lots.
- Eventually had to sit on bed and hold his hand for fifteen minutes until he went to sleep.
- Goal of letting him learn to put self to sleep, in hopes that he will put self BACK to sleep in middle of night instead of waking me up, is going to be a long haul.
+ But I didn't have to lie down and cuddle him until he feel asleep?
- And now, work. And paranoia about my own throat.
- SteelyKid has strep.
+ SteelyKid gets to stop the loathsome antibiotic she was taking for something else (four times a day!) and take bubble-gum flavored amoxycillin that she actually likes.
- I'm allergic to amoxycillin so we get to watch her for that.
+ She's been in a really great energetic mood since just before dinner...
- ...but still needs to stay home tomorrow, which actually puts a bigger dent in Chad's productivity than if she were a sleepy lump on the couch.
+ The Pip is four, so it's time to do bedtime just like his sister: one of us sits on the bed for two songs, sets a timer, comes back when timer beeps to check up.
- Crying. Lots.
- Eventually had to sit on bed and hold his hand for fifteen minutes until he went to sleep.
- Goal of letting him learn to put self to sleep, in hopes that he will put self BACK to sleep in middle of night instead of waking me up, is going to be a long haul.
+ But I didn't have to lie down and cuddle him until he feel asleep?
- And now, work. And paranoia about my own throat.
Anecdote one:
A few days ago, the Pip told me that "Mister Nobody" was his invisible friend's first name.
His full name is Mister Nobody Patootie-Booty-Butt Something.
Anecdote two:
Tonight SteelyKid attempted to fend off bedtime through a monologue recreating the history on Earth by going from her and her brother, to her ancestors back to her great-great-grandparents (one generation at a time), then to cousins of cousins, then to the interconnectedness of all humanity, then to humanity's primate ancestors, then a side trip to birds and dinosaurs, then to the start of life on Earth, and then the formation of the Earth itself.
And now, since I was up at five this morning to take the Pip for a minor surgical procedure (probe of not-properly-draining tear duct; required general anesthesia because eye; all's well), I must get the laundry out of the dryer and faceplant into bed.
A few days ago, the Pip told me that "Mister Nobody" was his invisible friend's first name.
His full name is Mister Nobody Patootie-Booty-Butt Something.
Anecdote two:
Tonight SteelyKid attempted to fend off bedtime through a monologue recreating the history on Earth by going from her and her brother, to her ancestors back to her great-great-grandparents (one generation at a time), then to cousins of cousins, then to the interconnectedness of all humanity, then to humanity's primate ancestors, then a side trip to birds and dinosaurs, then to the start of life on Earth, and then the formation of the Earth itself.
And now, since I was up at five this morning to take the Pip for a minor surgical procedure (probe of not-properly-draining tear duct; required general anesthesia because eye; all's well), I must get the laundry out of the dryer and faceplant into bed.
in happier news
Sep. 1st, 2015 09:46 pmFB & G+ tend to get all the kid pictures, so, giant children are giant:
( with Kate for scale )
First day of second grade, today. The Pip starts pre-K in a week.
Edit: 49.25" and 41.5", respectively.
( with Kate for scale )
First day of second grade, today. The Pip starts pre-K in a week.
Edit: 49.25" and 41.5", respectively.
rec SteelyKid books!
Jul. 10th, 2015 08:30 amI need chaptered adventure books for SteelyKid (nearly 7) with female protagonists.
I'm not sure the technical name for the format she's up to--about 80-120 pages, slightly wider than a standard mass market paperback, an illustration every chapter or so. The series we're just finishing, Beast Quest, says 7-10 years on the back, as does the one before that, Underworlds (Tony Abbott).
Natural disasters, secondary-world fantasy, and portal fantasies are the last three sub-genres she's read, I think, and mystery is okay too. And the female characters have to be the protagonists, not the sidekicks, especially not the sidekicks who keep needing to get rescued.
She has a Franny K. Stein book from her teacher, so if she likes that there's more of those. Oh, and she liked the first Creepella Von Cacklefur book, so I'll get more of those.
Ideally the prose would also be non-awful, but I made it through the Underworlds series, so I can make it through some similar non-grammatical and clunky stuff to get her girl action heroes.
(Note age/format limits, please; i.e., don't recommend Tamora Pierce. And if you're going to say "she's the sidekick but she's cool," please don't.)
I'm not sure the technical name for the format she's up to--about 80-120 pages, slightly wider than a standard mass market paperback, an illustration every chapter or so. The series we're just finishing, Beast Quest, says 7-10 years on the back, as does the one before that, Underworlds (Tony Abbott).
Natural disasters, secondary-world fantasy, and portal fantasies are the last three sub-genres she's read, I think, and mystery is okay too. And the female characters have to be the protagonists, not the sidekicks, especially not the sidekicks who keep needing to get rescued.
She has a Franny K. Stein book from her teacher, so if she likes that there's more of those. Oh, and she liked the first Creepella Von Cacklefur book, so I'll get more of those.
Ideally the prose would also be non-awful, but I made it through the Underworlds series, so I can make it through some similar non-grammatical and clunky stuff to get her girl action heroes.
(Note age/format limits, please; i.e., don't recommend Tamora Pierce. And if you're going to say "she's the sidekick but she's cool," please don't.)
Because if you need a preschooler dressed like a superhero being photobombed by a first-grader, well, that's a very specific need and I've got you covered:
( right behind the cut )
And now, to eat the breakfast I haven't yet in order to get them out the door on time, walk the dog, and do all the housework that I comprehensively failed at last night. Also go to work.
( right behind the cut )
And now, to eat the breakfast I haven't yet in order to get them out the door on time, walk the dog, and do all the housework that I comprehensively failed at last night. Also go to work.
the difference three years makes
Feb. 27th, 2015 11:10 pm(I am trying to post when I think of things, even if they don't seem "worthy" of posts, because I want to get back in the habit.)
We took the kids to Wild Kratts Live tonight. Wild Kratts is a PBS show about two brothers who, in bookending live-action segments, meet and talk about wild creatures, and in the animated middle, put on "creature power suits" and fly around in a giant turtle-shaped ship with a tech crew of three saving animals from the obligatory villains. (I have never actually seen an episode all the way through, so this is a rough approximation.) The kids love this, though SteelyKid is starting to go off it a bit, and it must be pretty popular because six weeks ago, the only seats left were literally in the second-to-last-row of the balcony.
Anyway. The show was cheesy but hit all the kid-pleasing notes, and they had a great time. But the thing of note was the end special effect [*], which was the brothers using a "miniaturizer" they'd recovered from the villains: they said they were activating it, fog or lights or something covered their exit, and then when the stage lights came back on, there were stuffed toy versions of the brothers on the stage where they'd been standing. (Which were, of course, for sale outside.)
As the subject line says: SteelyKid (now 6.5) and the Pip (now 3.25) nearly got in a major fight over this, because she saw that they were toys, but he insisted that they'd been miniaturized. Fortunately we were able to distract them before someone started crying over this disagreement.
[*] Prior special effects included "caracal power" of high-jumping using a springboard behind a fake rock, and "orangutan power" of moving through trees by swinging on a big swing coming in from off-stage. Also the process of donning a "creature power suit" was a stage blackout while the actor went off-stage to put on a cloth costume, covered by a super-slow animation on the screen, which made me really grateful for the person who put together all the Iron Man suit sequences into one video to clear the palate.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to listen to something other than the show's theme song to get it out of my head, fold laundry, and then collapse into bed.
We took the kids to Wild Kratts Live tonight. Wild Kratts is a PBS show about two brothers who, in bookending live-action segments, meet and talk about wild creatures, and in the animated middle, put on "creature power suits" and fly around in a giant turtle-shaped ship with a tech crew of three saving animals from the obligatory villains. (I have never actually seen an episode all the way through, so this is a rough approximation.) The kids love this, though SteelyKid is starting to go off it a bit, and it must be pretty popular because six weeks ago, the only seats left were literally in the second-to-last-row of the balcony.
Anyway. The show was cheesy but hit all the kid-pleasing notes, and they had a great time. But the thing of note was the end special effect [*], which was the brothers using a "miniaturizer" they'd recovered from the villains: they said they were activating it, fog or lights or something covered their exit, and then when the stage lights came back on, there were stuffed toy versions of the brothers on the stage where they'd been standing. (Which were, of course, for sale outside.)
As the subject line says: SteelyKid (now 6.5) and the Pip (now 3.25) nearly got in a major fight over this, because she saw that they were toys, but he insisted that they'd been miniaturized. Fortunately we were able to distract them before someone started crying over this disagreement.
[*] Prior special effects included "caracal power" of high-jumping using a springboard behind a fake rock, and "orangutan power" of moving through trees by swinging on a big swing coming in from off-stage. Also the process of donning a "creature power suit" was a stage blackout while the actor went off-stage to put on a cloth costume, covered by a super-slow animation on the screen, which made me really grateful for the person who put together all the Iron Man suit sequences into one video to clear the palate.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to listen to something other than the show's theme song to get it out of my head, fold laundry, and then collapse into bed.
pop culture memories, happy and sad
Nov. 3rd, 2014 10:32 pmVery sorry to hear that Tom Magliozzi, the one who laughed all the time on Car Talk, has died. I have actually three different pretty strong associations with Car Talk, which is impressive considering that I've never done anything more with a car than add windshield wiper fluid. First, the two years in New Haven when Chad was doing a post-doc and I was in law school; NPR was his alarm clock station and whichever morning Car Talk was on, was timed perfectly for lazy weekend waking-up. (Especially as they've moved into re-runs, the show's occasional but very tired sexism has become more grating to me, so it's weird to have my principal association be soft-focus romantic contentment.) Second, around about SteelyKid's birth I went back to listening to the show, this time as a podcast, and blitzed my way through quite the backlog up in the nursery with her (this association is less strong because I was so out of it during that time). And third, continuing up to the present day, I start my week with Click and Clack: the podcast is released over the weekend, and I default to listening to it on Monday's commute to and from work. In fact, I did that today, but I came home early (more on that in a moment) and had already finished it when I heard the news.
I have spent literally hundreds of hours listening to these guys. I knew what I was hearing was exaggerated personas, but I still enjoyed their company. And hey, their show taught me enough that I knew to take my car in for service for what turned out to be a bad wheel bearing, before the wheel actually fell off: so it was useful too.
The reason I was coming home early is SteelyKid had a tooth out today (she's fine) and Chad had class. But irresponsible though it would have been, I would have been not-so-secretly happy to stay home with her the whole day, because we realized a little bit ago this was the perfect opportunity to show her The Princess Bride for the first time—it's too scary for the Pip—and it was done by the time I got home. I asked her about it after the bleeding stopped and her mood improved (both of which happened at the same time, almost like flipping a switch; it was incredibly bizarre though of course welcome), and we agreed that Wesley's head flopping around on the castle wall was very funny, as was when the Prince got tied up; she also liked Fezzik and the horses, and "the ninja" (the Man in Black) fighting, but thought the Machine was too loud, especially when it went to 50. Chad tells me that Fred Savage's character was a note-perfect stand-in for her, not that this was a surprise; and that she spotted the Man in Black as a good guy right away, which is interesting. I'm sorry I didn't get to see her face—I'm calling dibs on showing it to the Pip now, though we'll have to do it solo so SteelyKid doesn't spoil it all for him—but now I'm flashing back to countless weekends watching it on UHF in my childhood, and feeling warm and fuzzy that I've passed along something so great to her. (Also feeling like a rewatch is due; I know what I'm putting on during stitching the next couple of sessions.)
I have spent literally hundreds of hours listening to these guys. I knew what I was hearing was exaggerated personas, but I still enjoyed their company. And hey, their show taught me enough that I knew to take my car in for service for what turned out to be a bad wheel bearing, before the wheel actually fell off: so it was useful too.
The reason I was coming home early is SteelyKid had a tooth out today (she's fine) and Chad had class. But irresponsible though it would have been, I would have been not-so-secretly happy to stay home with her the whole day, because we realized a little bit ago this was the perfect opportunity to show her The Princess Bride for the first time—it's too scary for the Pip—and it was done by the time I got home. I asked her about it after the bleeding stopped and her mood improved (both of which happened at the same time, almost like flipping a switch; it was incredibly bizarre though of course welcome), and we agreed that Wesley's head flopping around on the castle wall was very funny, as was when the Prince got tied up; she also liked Fezzik and the horses, and "the ninja" (the Man in Black) fighting, but thought the Machine was too loud, especially when it went to 50. Chad tells me that Fred Savage's character was a note-perfect stand-in for her, not that this was a surprise; and that she spotted the Man in Black as a good guy right away, which is interesting. I'm sorry I didn't get to see her face—I'm calling dibs on showing it to the Pip now, though we'll have to do it solo so SteelyKid doesn't spoil it all for him—but now I'm flashing back to countless weekends watching it on UHF in my childhood, and feeling warm and fuzzy that I've passed along something so great to her. (Also feeling like a rewatch is due; I know what I'm putting on during stitching the next couple of sessions.)
I've been feeling particularly stabby about the lead-up to Father's Day this year [*]. But the little booklet SteelyKid made Chad has grudgingly reconciled me to the existence of the holiday, because it is awfully cute.
[*] Every time I get an email, from a business or charity I've done business with in the past, with a Subject: that proclaims I should get my dad something, I have this little mental image of leaping through the computer and demanding to be put on a "my father is dead, assholes" marketing exclusion list, preferably with my hands around someone's throat.
Best wishes to fathers of all kinds (especially the non-biological ones), and to all those thinking fondly of fathers today. And strength and support to those for who today's hard, for whatever reason.
[*] Every time I get an email, from a business or charity I've done business with in the past, with a Subject: that proclaims I should get my dad something, I have this little mental image of leaping through the computer and demanding to be put on a "my father is dead, assholes" marketing exclusion list, preferably with my hands around someone's throat.
Best wishes to fathers of all kinds (especially the non-biological ones), and to all those thinking fondly of fathers today. And strength and support to those for who today's hard, for whatever reason.
unexpected parenting dilemmas
Jun. 1st, 2014 08:29 pmWell, unexpected right this moment, anyway.
SteelyKid got a Lego Clone Wars book today—some of her friends at school/daycare like Star Wars, so she's been reading a random selection of kid-pitched Star Wars books, most of which are quite dreadful. Today's was both dreadful and incredibly long, and as I slogged through it, I found myself wondering when we should introduce her to the actual movies (and trying to remember the recommended viewing order that someone had mentioned a while ago). I'd just about decided that she was still kind of young for them, at 5 and 5/6 . . .
. . . when we got to the end of the book, when everyone is celebrating except Anakin and Palpatine—Anakin because he's pouty and upset that someone else is getting attention (that's text not subtext), and Palpatine because he is the worst at pretending to be Not Evil EVER. And Palpatine tells Anakin something like, I believe you'll be a great Jedi, and the book ends.
SteelyKid promptly asks me, "Why would a bad guy say something nice?"
And suddenly I realize that she is still unspoiled for Anakin's fate, rather to my surprise. I told her that Palpatine was probably trying to trick Anakin—at which point she started spinning a story about how the seats they were sitting on were trapped and Anakin's was going to flip over and he was going to fall down.
But now I feel a responsibility to have her experience that reveal properly—even though I still think she's probably kinda young for it (and the Pip is definitely, so that's at least three weekends of watching when he's taking a nap). And even taking out Episode I, I hate to actually voluntarily show her the prequels before she has more of a critical facility. Still . . .
ETA: now Chad tells me that he in fact told her today! She thought Anakin was Vader's son, and he corrected her. All this angst, could totally have been short-circuited if I'd waited for him to come downstairs from putting the Pip to bed before writing this. (But she obviously doesn't understand how, so it's probably still worth thinking about. (Not that the prequels really do any kind of decent job explaining, at least as I recall the third.))
SteelyKid got a Lego Clone Wars book today—some of her friends at school/daycare like Star Wars, so she's been reading a random selection of kid-pitched Star Wars books, most of which are quite dreadful. Today's was both dreadful and incredibly long, and as I slogged through it, I found myself wondering when we should introduce her to the actual movies (and trying to remember the recommended viewing order that someone had mentioned a while ago). I'd just about decided that she was still kind of young for them, at 5 and 5/6 . . .
. . . when we got to the end of the book, when everyone is celebrating except Anakin and Palpatine—Anakin because he's pouty and upset that someone else is getting attention (that's text not subtext), and Palpatine because he is the worst at pretending to be Not Evil EVER. And Palpatine tells Anakin something like, I believe you'll be a great Jedi, and the book ends.
SteelyKid promptly asks me, "Why would a bad guy say something nice?"
And suddenly I realize that she is still unspoiled for Anakin's fate, rather to my surprise. I told her that Palpatine was probably trying to trick Anakin—at which point she started spinning a story about how the seats they were sitting on were trapped and Anakin's was going to flip over and he was going to fall down.
But now I feel a responsibility to have her experience that reveal properly—even though I still think she's probably kinda young for it (and the Pip is definitely, so that's at least three weekends of watching when he's taking a nap). And even taking out Episode I, I hate to actually voluntarily show her the prequels before she has more of a critical facility. Still . . .
ETA: now Chad tells me that he in fact told her today! She thought Anakin was Vader's son, and he corrected her. All this angst, could totally have been short-circuited if I'd waited for him to come downstairs from putting the Pip to bed before writing this. (But she obviously doesn't understand how, so it's probably still worth thinking about. (Not that the prequels really do any kind of decent job explaining, at least as I recall the third.))
changes of pace
Jan. 5th, 2013 09:38 amYesterday afternoon, Chad's parents picked the kids up (both kids; their first overnight with the Pip without us there).
Last night, I stayed late at work, had a lovely dinner out, fought Quicken into admitting that my account was too reconciled, cleaned off my desk of a week's worth of mail, took all the ornaments off the tree and put them away, and then slept so soundly that my back is stiff this morning (apparently my body is no longer used to sleeping the night through and, I don't know, doesn't automatically move or something any more?).
The only bad things about this are (a) look how adorable they are! and (b) I am worried about inflicting the Pip's variable sleeping ability on people not used to it . . .
But as changes of pace go, on the whole pretty nice. Now, pack and dress and off for a whirlwind vacation.
miscellany
Dec. 9th, 2010 10:52 pm- I have a Starveling Cat in Echo Bazaar now! Thank you again,
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
yhlee. I can't express how much this amuses me. Anyone who's playing that I don't already know, leave your username in comments and I'll follow you under my game account. - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (recorded off cable, half-watched while stitching) is not a very good movie. Granted, it wasn't a very good book. But I wouldn't have thought it possible to make the action sequences of the ending so boring on-screen.
- Reinventing the stitching wheel, part 25 in a series: linen turns out to not be a good fabric for blackwork.
- My car needs major repairs for the second time this year. I will not have put enough money into it to equal the payments I would have made on a new car this year, but I'm worried that I'm on the downward slide (it's a 2003 Prius with almost 94K miles). And I'm sad that I no longer love it. Any suggestions for feeling happy with one's older car again?
- The problem with Horton Hatches the Egg is that Horton is a Mary Sue, specifically the kind where the virtue of the protagonist is demonstrated by piling absurd pain and indignity on top of absurd pain and indignity. (Like an early Mercedes Lackey novel, or an SGA post-"Trinity" fic, except that Horton hasn't blown up a solar system.)
- I haven't done a SteelyKid post in ages, so those of you who don't follow Chad's blog won't have seen this recent picture. I have to point it out because it is so characteristic: open book, bare feet (she will not wear socks if she has a choice about it), random item of clothing she saw and insisted on wearing, stuffed animals, and big grin. That's our toddler.
