LostSurprise
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Posts posted by LostSurprise
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My son has medical issues so we see a lot of doctors, general and specialties. At this point I always interpret Check-in as 'be 15 minutes early if you are a new patient or have new information, otherwise be 5 minutes before the scheduled time.' I also like to think of it as the time we shoot for and the time we absolutely have to be there.
Of course, this can come back to haunt you. It turns out that while my interpretation is completely reasonable for almost every physician and counselor we've seen, psychotherapists at our clinic actually do expect you to come in 15 minutes early. Check-in for them includes vitals usually done at appointment time for other doctors. They explained nicely to me that Check-in is nurse time for their office. No other office in the system has it scheduled that way, so it really depends on the office.
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I was going to suggest Duluth Trading Co. as well. Tall shops like Long Tall Sally (which can be ordered from online) also have long shirts (longer arms, etc.) Both are a bit expensive but watch for sales.
As a tall woman I'm not a big fan of Old Navy.
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I tried some Irving in my late-teens/early twenties, but all I can remember is a vague distaste, like eating a pastry from a lousy bakery that has a filling that's started to go 'off'. I've wondered now and again if it was just an artifact of who I was then, but haven't been able to bring myself to try again... thank you for validating my reluctance!
I really hated the Cider House Rules, too, for a very specific reason: I worked as a CNM for many years, and people who do OBGYN just don't talk about it in the way he does. I wondered if he did any kind of research or if he invented his character's experiences. But I dislike an author who pretends to know about something and he really doesn't.
Irving annoys me. I've tried to like him. I actually threw Cider House Rules in the trash. I was that annoyed. And Widow for One Year (roll eyes). Irving has the gumption to say he never copies from reality..everything is original. Unfortunately, his people never seem real to me, especially the women.
I did bring, and read, Borges' The Book of Imaginary Beings, which was every bit as good as Borges fans might expect, with a great many literary beasts making appearances, including critters from Dante's Inferno, and a white weaselly thing from (of course) Poe's Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket. My favorite was the Celestial Stag, of Chinese myth:
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Finishing up Eudora Welty's novel Losing Battles, which is only okay but was all I had left for our first week when there were no books in English available. But that part of our journey was not unliterary, as I read a great deal of Our Athenian Cousin (thank you, Baldwin Project) to Wee Girl; and dh and Middle Girl read lines from Euripides in the very Theatre at Epidaurus, which made everyone happy with its amazing acoustics, unimpaired by the millennia.
The Book of Imaginary Beings is so whimsical for Borges. I enjoyed it too.
Losing Battles is all over the place. Love the prose. It was hard to care about the plot. Have you read Delta Wedding?
I've never been able to put my finger on what element it is that tips the scales from liking or respect to adoring a book. It's there, I can almost 'taste' it, but I can't articulate it.
I had to put my history geek on hold to enjoy Daughter of Time - partly because, despite some sympathies I'm not a Ricardian, and partly because I prefer my history more objective, and this is decidedly not... but I like what she does with it... though Brat Farrar remains my favorite of her mysteries.
:)
My history geek can't watch National Treasure, but I didn't mind this. Of course it was incredibly biased. I felt the author did a good job setting the narrator up as a biased person who makes snap judgments based on physiognomy. He doesn't even get to find the information himself! It's all second-third-fourthhand anyway.
I enjoyed the unusual take on the mystery genre and the questioning of history...how little is available to create the historical record..how the victor determines the culture and group memory. A fun little exercise.
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DS3 kept making me check my bee-status and post total. I changed it so I could stop checking.
Nomad is part of an old tagline and user name I've had over the years. My life is overly-settled right now but it reminds me that I'm still a Nomad at heart. I can still be a Nomad within my mental landscape.
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I've been short on sleep the last 5 days for various reasons, and ds has been up or had medical problems every 3 hours every time I could sleep. And dh tore ligaments in his right foot so he can barely walk. He's no help at all right now.
I'm exhausted, ds is totally unfocused on anything other than video games, and the other boys get out of public school this week so focusing my youngest is going to be nigh impossible.
There is not enough coffee in the world for this.
Hugs for everyone else.
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Whoever linked to Sir Arthur Rackham, thank you. I've been enjoying his illustrations today because of you.
I read too many things simultaneously and am too moody this year for good output, but I finished up a bunch of things. A bit of Charles Portis (mostly his non-fiction). A bit of German Romanticism thanks to a rabbit trail from Borge's Labyrinths (Novalis' Hymn to the Night and others). Herland (feminist utopia).
Some photography books. I loved Eudora Welty: Photos more than Ansel Adams: Classic Images...perhaps because it was more unexpected? Or more people/faces focused? Which reminds me of my feelings of Welty (loved beyond reason) vs. Faulkner (respected but not adored)...is it an aspect of the depth of the personal vs. high and majestic contrast? Inner-to-outward? Female vs. male POV? Fun to think about. I do love the faces though. I think Welty and I just live on a similar wavelength. It was fun to read her interview in the front of the book.
And dh borrowed the next few Saga collections and told me I was safe to read them. I'm kind of disappointed that I did, although it wasn't as edgy as the first book. I'm just a fragile flower in the modern age, I guess.
Mmm...reading Josephine Tey's The Daughter of Time and really enjoying it. The history geek approves. And some Peter Freuchen Eskimo stuff. Best to all of you this week. Read well.
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I live in zone 4b.
Rosemary
Mint (but it goes nuts, so put it somewhere contained)
I actually have no idea if those work in zone 4... I think rosemary would survive a nuclear holocaust along with cockroaches though.As mentioned later, rosemary doesn't survive as a perennial in US zone 4. You would have to pot it up and take it in for the winter.
Rosemary won't work for zone 4. Even in a protected and warm microclimate, it does not survive some of our zone 6b/7a winters :(
You'd need to keep it in a pot and bring it indoors for the winter.Nasturtiums
Sunflowers
Why not put down landscape fabric and bark mulch, then plant whatever you like? Then it won't have to be edible because it won't require so much maintenance.
Strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, or mint will take over your entire garden if you let them. They'd require more maintenance to keep under control than most other perennials. I put mint into a 4x8 raised bed IN the plastic pot to keep it controlled; in two years it now lives in the entire 4x8 bed *aside* from in the pot (and aside from the 4x1' space where the chives live at one end).
I'm not a fan of landscape fabric, but these berries and mint do spread. Worthwhile IMO, but it takes work each spring and/or fall to cut them back. Also, canes tend to have some kind of thorn. Depending on the age of your children, you may need to take that into consideration.
Hah!
In our household, we say you can always count on the chives.
Yep, chives are just fine in zone 4. Oregano and mint are very strong perennials as well (but both spread..mint more than oregano..I can keep oregano in one place with minimal work but I pot mint). Parsley, dill, and cilantro can self-seed but are finicky.
I love the little wild strawberries. So tiny! If you can find them they're fun.
Currants and gooseberry do not spread as much as cane fruits (raspberry/blackberry) but are easier to grow than blueberry (which can be finicky about sun/shade/soil ph). They also grow in partial shade. Speaking of shade, fern fronds are edible (the early curls), and parts of milkweed.
The greens of ox-eye daisies are edible, as well as dandelions, chicory, certain kinds of nettles, but I wouldn't plant them unless you know you like them.
For trees, I'm fond of pie cherries/sour cherries and plums. They're harder to find then apple. Also, the University of Minnesota has a great cultivar for hazelnut (bushes). If I had more sun I would grow that.
For annuals, peas and beans (especially runner beans) have very pretty flowers. They do need a place to climb and spread out, but a tent of scarlet runner beans is very pretty. Sunflowers take yearly prep, but they can also be pretty.
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Are band movies (movies about a band being formed) the modern equivalent of musicals? Once made me think of The Commitments and I have God Help the Girl in my interlibrary loan order.
Which reminds me of Hard Days Night.
I have a strange affection for Flower Drum Song and The Mikado. I know how ridiculous they are, but I can't help myself.
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I watched a lot of musicals growing up.
Singin' in the Rain
Yankee Doodle Dandy
Once
Meet Me in St. Louis
The King and I
My Fair Lady
The Music Man
Mary Poppins
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We played a game of Peloponnes last night too. DH was reading instructions while we did but it went off fairly well.
Peloponnes is a civilization game where you chose one of the Greek city states and develop it's resources and city. Most of this is done by bidding on various Land and City tiles and then reaping the rewards of those choices.
If you like auction games, you might like this. There is a big focus on money and turn order. Players add to their cities and try to develop their resources to withstand random cataclysmic events (such as an earthquake or drought). Well developed resources create an overage so they can develop luxury goods which give you a bit more flexibility when you lack something.
It feels pretty quick because all you're doing is bidding, paying, laying, and then collecting. The rounds move quickly. I wouldn't say I was overwhelmed by this game, but I do want to play it a few more times. It was our first play and we were all pretty polite in terms of bidding. I'm not sure what it would be like if we were more cutthroat.
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I played this last month when dh and the older boys came back from the Gaming Hoopla. DS1 won it in a raffle and he was feeling pretty good about it. He's my not-that-into-gaming gamer and also my I-like-HPLovecraft kid so it just worked out well for him.
He told me he thought I would like it, but he's always trying to get me to play Arkham Horror so I didn't pay too much attention.
I did like this though! It's more of a puzzle game.
Players try to summon various lesser and greater creatures (servants of the Old Ones) in the hope of summoning one of the Old Ones. To summon you must recognize or create the pattern at the bottom of the card. Once you summon lesser creatures they help you summon greater ones by allowing you to ignore part of the more complex patterns of the Old Ones. Each summoned creature gives you victory points and the game ends when someone reaches 10 points.
The pattern of stars can be changed by movement back or forth, switching two tiles, or flipping a tile (what is one the backside is visible on the corner of each tile).This can get quite complicated and puzzle-y. It takes time because people can get paralyzed by all the possibilities. If you have puzzle lovers though, especially those fond of cthulu or Lovecraft, they may like this. I liked it, but I like visual puzzles. It did take a lot of time to play though, for what it is.
The art is the same kind you find in Munchkin. It's the same publisher.
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We go to a few, mostly in our home state. They are really worthwhile if you like board games. It's a great way to see and try out games before you spend the money on them (plus the people are fun and friendly).
http://gameconventioncentral.com/ is a great resource for board game conventions around the world.
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To whoever wondered if Fringe got too dark...it ended well. Probably one of the more satisfying show endings, IMO.
I agree that Orphan Black (CBC), Fringe (US), and Bletchley Circle (BBC) are worth a look. Orphan Black is the edgiest of the group. Probably more edgy than anything else I'm suggesting.
Blandings (BBC, Wodehouse)
Sherlock (BBC modern SH)
Mr. & Mrs. Murder (Australian, light modern mystery)
Elementary (modern Sherlock Holmes in NY)
Leverage (light show with weekly cons ala Oceans Eleven)
Older shows:
Pushing Daisies
Dead Like Me
Freaks & Geeks
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I'm a fairly new knitter (6 months), and I think having a range of options for them to try during class is the best option. Allow them to chose and then buy what makes the most sense for them.
If possible, make sure the project is on a larger size needle (6 or over). One of the difficulties of a lot of small circular projects is that the gauge is so small you're struggling with both the new process and working with a smaller yarn than usual. I frogged my first 2 DPN projects because I couldn't struggle with both aspects at one time. When I switched to a project with large metal DPNs, I had a much easier time.
My first circular project was a hat on a size 8/16" circular needle. I wasn't sure I would like DPNs and I didn't want to invest in multiple circular needles until I knew knitting was something I would stick with. A hat was fairly simple and I could practice colorwork which was fun.
I do like 2 needle circular knitting. It's pretty easy to figure out. I finished my MIL's slippers with it when I was struggling with DPNs, and I moved on to making a pair of socks with it. One of the nice things is that when you set it down it doesn't fall off the needles. Magic loop looks a bit complicated to me. I think both are great to show people in person (and maybe have a small sheet of pictures/directions or a link to a Youtube video to help remember). Many people don't understand flat photos of 3D processes very well.
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I think all we can do is help teach nutrition (which foods are nutritionally dense and which are high calorie for little nutrition, which foods 'stick' with you longer so you don't feel hungry, how to balance foods together, how to recognize hunger and fullness, how dehydration can read as hunger, how to keep drinking water throughout the day), keep food at home healthy with occasional treats, and encourage them to be busy and active.
I was an overweight child/teen. My oldest son is overweight (and his brothers are either average or underweight).
If I could give my son one thing I would help him understand that he can influence his weight. He can take control of it. I did when I left home and went to college.
Sometimes it's hard to watch someone else struggle, especially if we see our own struggle in it. I often remind myself that if I push him or control him now when he leaves home it will be harder for him. Better that I give him unconditional love now, teach him the tools he can use when he chooses, listen, and make our home as healthy for all of us as possible. People will make their own decisions. Give them the tools they need.
I also want to mention that sometimes food can be a natural comfort to people. Being a teen is stressful, both physically and emotionally. I don't want to withhold food just because it's hard for me to remember how really hungry teens are. I want to teach them to deal with their anxiety and emotions actively. I want to be a support...and I can't do that if I control or criticize.
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My mother is a lefty. She showed me standard English 'throwing' with the right hand, but when she knits herself she uses kind of an inverted English in the left hand (which is known as continental when held in that hand but she pitches or levers more like English more than picking which is what most continental users do). I don't know how to describe it, but she works with the left hand and forefinger and steadies with the right. She told me lefties often have to figure their own way to do things.
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Hannibal~I did actually throw this book at the wall while reading it...twice. Harris dishonored one of the major characters with this charade. After being ruthlessly boring for the entire novel he went to completely ridiculous in the last 70 pages.
I'm not particularly fond of Wuthering Heights and some other classics, but at least I didn't feel disgust when I finished them...just annoyance.
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My mother has taught me crochet and knitting at different ages and different aspects have been clear to me at different times.
When I first learned at 5 or 6, single chain crochet made sense to me. I think I could even do a double. I made a ton of "headbands" and the neighborhood kids made my mom teach them too. Within a few weeks I forgot how to crotchet.
I tried a few times over the years and neither took.
When I was fresh out of college she showed me how to knit and I knit on a "scarf" on and off for 6 months. I forgot how by Christmas and threw out the 4" scarf.
Every 5 years or so as an adult I had her show me one or the other. None of them stuck more than a day or two. I have a hard time visualizing the actions and following through. The year before last my mother gave me my great grandmother's tapestry knitting bag and needles. She decided she preferred quilting.
Last Halloween, ds4 was sick and needed a lot of watching over so I spent a week just watching knitting videos and practicing. I now knit daily. I don't remember how to crochet but it makes logical sense to me as a knitter. I just prefer the look and feel of knitting right now.
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Your state extension service (ag usually from the state college or the state dept of natural resources) has lots of good information. If it seems overwhelming see if they have a section for 4-H. That's geared towards kids so it really is beginner info.
I really love gardening blogs. Do a search for "_____(your state or region) gardening blogs." A lot of people are just keeping track of their journey so you'll get a lot of information. Also, GardenWeb.com has a ton of forums for everything. You find something for everything. It's a great place to ask questions if you can't find anyone in real life to ask.
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Julia. One of my favorite girl's names as a child. I would love to be Julia.
Past names were a mixed bag but almost all good. Flora (love it). Esther (huh)? Etta (like it). Tabitha (love it). I'd be happy with many of these names.
I'm not as happy with the (very popular) nickname I went by as a child. Harper isn't so bad, but the rest are pretty common as well (Lisa, Tina, Heather).
Dh: Luca ..... hilarious
DS: exactly the same
DS: Thomas
DS: Malcolm
DS: Christian
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Square foot garden is good. Less technical, but similar technique, is Lasagna Gardening.
The Garden Primer (Barbara Damrosch) is also pretty good. I would say it had better general gardening information than SFG (which covers more about his raised-bed method).
One book that helped me relax and just enjoy it was Ruth Stout's No-Work Garden book. You won't learn much technique there but she's so chatty and fun and gives you permission to just ignore certain things.
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Your state public radio may have a show for your area. They tend to be much more basic and people can email or call in with questions.
The Master Gardeners have classes. You should be able to take a few in your area.
Do a search for a _____ (insert state name) Gardening Book. Especially the ones that go month by month. They tend to go much more simply step by step.
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Tampons were always super uncomfortable and invasive to me. I tried them several times in college, and then again after my first two were born. Plus there's TSS. I knew a really fastidious girl in college (the kind of person who changes them contantly) who was hospitalized for 3-4 days for that reason. They just dry you out. Yuck.
Not that pads are fun, but tampons were always worse. I went to cloth pads in my 20s and that made pads much more bareable. Switched to a cup after 3 kids, even better. (So here's a cup user who still doesn't like tampons.)
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I've always been amused that my SIL's unusual name came from a tombstone in California. MIL fixated on it. They're unsure if the person was male or female.
Book a Week 2015 - BW22: Judicious June
in The Chat Board
Posted
<Raised eyebrows to deciding the efficacy of someone's genre output based on one novel...but you realize what you're saying.> ;)
Delta Wedding is better, simpler, although they both follow an extended family gathering. Losing Battles is more of a farce IMO. I'm not really a fan of farce, but I rated it a bit higher then you did. Probably because I didn't see the clan's life as a mud-wallow, but an equally-valid, very human, lifestyle.
Think of the Miss Julia section as being one of the reaches of that farce. It winks at you, definitely. Welty isn't down on backwoods' folk. There's a lot of love in her descriptions. She loves people. But people are ridiculous, even the progressive, upright ones like Miss Julia and most definitely the rest when we're ignorant or clannish. What I enjoyed about that section was how equally she projected the two sides' ignorance of each other. Miss Julia, we feel for her, but she did not understand the people of the county. She came to save them, and most of the time people do not want to be saved. They resent it. Miss Julia never became one of them because she was too busy telling them what to do. Not that the local clans let anyone in easily. Watching orphaned outsider Gloria maneuver after marrying in to this family is painful, but it's also obvious that she wants to belong and if nothing else a clan makes you a part of something.
Eudora Welty was a city kid from Jackson, MS with some extended family ties in the country. She's more like Gloria or Laura in Delta Wedding. She belongs, but is the outsider. She loves it, but she sees its ridiculousness.
Off topic, but Welty has some excellent biographical stories. I think we had to read parts of One Writer's Beginnings in high school. I love her description of childhood and books and the library.