Babylonian
Mar. 10th, 2026 12:01 am![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
wordsmithdaily_feedDept. of Memes
Mar. 9th, 2026 11:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kaffy_r
I decided to get back in the music meme game after
owlboy picked up the exercise and commented that they got the idea from me. And of course, Day 21 asks me to share a song that I listen to in the wee small hours. There are at least a couple of problems with that. First, I rarely stay awake past 10 p.m. these days because I am older than the solar system. Secondly, on those extremely rare occasions when I think about being awake at that time, I find myself imagining walking outside and listening to the relative silence of Chicago at 3 a.m. Much as I love music, walking outside at that time of day calls for silence. So what music could I possibly show you? I couldn't think of anything at all for a while.
My first choice isn't one piece; it's a rotating number of somewhat-more-than-ambient pieces (I think there are somewhere between five and 10 pieces) by the owner of a YouTube radio station, Cyber Jazz/Blues Ambient Radio (which I talked about in an earlier post). Its music has what is clearly a deliberate nod to the original Blade Runner movie, with titles such as "Deckard's Blues" and "Rachael". It shares both feeling and sound with the movie's soundtrack, although it's a lot more limited. I find it very soothing, and it feels like nighttime music or, at the least, music for nights of rain glinting off neon illuminated streets. And in that world, one could walk through the rain at 3 a.m. and this music would be appropriate.
Here is the link to that station.
But there are other 3 a.m. songs. Although I'm not generally a fan of Frank Sinatra, I reluctantly admit that his rendition of this song is better than that of the crooner I like better, Tony Bennett.
Still, Cyber Jazz/Blues feels closer to what I would listen to at 3 a.m.
My previous entries in this meme can be sussed out via my Day 20 entry.
Shockingly Warm Monday
Mar. 9th, 2026 11:48 pmcrossover_chick
Anyway -- now that I'm done cheering the lovely weather, here is the daily write-up:
Work – It was actually a pretty quiet first day back at work – which, trust me, I was grateful for, given today’s the second day of my period and thus my brain is still a little foggy:
A) I spent most of the morning working on the GL again, since we had a good chunk of stuff uploaded on Friday
B) I then spent some time before lunch examining some returned mail to see why it was returned – not sure why a couple of pieces were sent back, as the addresses seemed legit, but one lady had straight-up died, which was understandable
C) And after lunch, I sent out a couple of tax letters to people who called looking for them and started working through a fresh set of obituaries
No credit card calls, no complicated issues in my e-mail, no nothing – worse thing that happened was my coworker asking me how to do a particular sort of reversal on my lunch break, and that admittedly only took a couple of minutes. We’ll see how tomorrow plays out!
To-Do List –
1. Get in a workout: Check – back on the bike and back with “Baldur's Gate 3 Cast play D&D #2 | High Rollers Presents: Shadows of Athkatla!” Tonight’s pedal session featured:
A) Shadowheart and Lae’zel entering The Bhaalspawn Experience – with Shadowheart’s new best friend Bing Bong the imp clinging to her hand like an eager little kid (much to Lae’zel’s disgust). After “gathering their party” in the entrance room, the ladies and Bing Bong stepped through a magic portal into the first room of the experience, featuring clockwork wooden automatons of Jaheira and Minsc (and Boo of course) in cages with explanatory plaques of who they were and how they were connected to The Bhaalspawn, along with various paths to travel. Bing Bong insisted on checking out the automatons first (Lae’zel grumbling over Shadowheart indulging the imp’s curiosity while Mark insisted that he did NOT intend for Bing Bong to be helpful to them in ANY way), but quickly got bored with their repeated phrases, and Shadowheart and Lae’zel headed down the corridor going straight on, through a room with some sort of fake magic generator (complete with illusions of lightning zipping around the room, scaring Bing Bong onto Shadowheart’s shoulder) and deeper into the exhibit –
Where they encountered the smashed-up remains of a couple of other automatons. And a long smear of fresh blood on the ground, as if someone had been dragged away. The ladies instantly agreed that the smart thing to do would be to follow the blood, and tracked the trail through a junction (where they discovered another smashed-up automaton of some sort of monster in a chamber to the right, and where Bing Bong managed to endear himself to Lae’zel a bit by licking the blood off the floor) and into a room which (as per another interlude with our lovely Narrator) mimicked the terrible cloning labs of the late Jon Irenicus, complete with vats and tubes of evil glowy blue-green stuff with various fake monstrosities in them (at least, I hope they were fake!). From there, they could see that the blood trail continued on through a recently-opened secret passage in the wall, and prepared to investigate further…
( Got Longer Than Anticipated )
2. Start final edits on Chapter 4 of “The Van Dort Vacancy”: Check – got the chapter uploaded to FF.net’s Document Manager for the final scan, and made my way though Victor bringing Alice and Smiler to his room to him offering them some of his clothes to be repurposed into clothes for them after having another guilt attack regarding how much STUFF he has (in this case, sixteen suits when he knows neither of them has anywhere near as many clothes). I left off with Alice and Smiler reassuring him again that he doesn’t have to apologize for growing up rich – we’ll see how much I can get through tomorrow! (Given the chapter’s only nine pages – likely a lot. :P)
3. Watch something on YouTube: No check – well, no check in the sense of “did I watch something other than chunks of what I watched during my workout so I could do an accurate write-up for you above and/or a quick clip of Victor in preparation for starting final edits on ‘The Van Dort Vacancy?’” *shakehead* One of these days I’m going to force myself to rely on my memory instead of going back to check certain details in my workout videos – it inevitably makes the whole process take longer! Maybe I can get to those CaFae Latte shorts I wanted to watch tomorrow...
4. Get my tumblr queues sorted: N/A – Monday, only keeping an eye on Victor Luvs Alice (N Smiler), not much going on there, what can you do. I should still have enough in my drafts to get a queue sorted for this week tomorrow!
Yeah, as usual, the workout write-up ate up more of my time than it should have. One of these days I am going to wrestle it back into submission, and then maybe I'll be able to get back to more usual nightly routines. As it stands, I should make an effort to get some decent sleep -- night all!
Henry St, Obstacles, Burning
Mar. 9th, 2026 07:44 pmranunculusSeed Starting
Mar. 9th, 2026 06:52 pmwinterfirelight posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
gardeningI'm hoping this week it'll be warm enough out that I can get some compost into the garden so it's all prepped when plants are ready to go in. We've already had crocuses and daffodils up for a few weeks, but we also had a frost this morning, so it's still a little early for most things. Unpredictable March! I've got big plans for some of the space this year, but we'll see how much I actually manage to get done. So far I'm mostly working on clearing out the cabinets so I have space for harvests later in the season. I made some tincture blends on Saturday to consolidate some jars, and used up some oils for salve yesterday. I'll have to spend a lot of time over the next couple of months drinking tea to work through my stash of dried herbs. There are worse fates!
The community garden has gotten started too, and I spent some time there today weeding and clearing out dead plants. I took an extra parsley and some stray borage home with me. I've never gotten borage to take in my garden, but I've tried putting it in a different location this time and maybe it'll settle in.
tenor viola followup
Mar. 9th, 2026 10:04 pmjazzfishOkay, so, clefs. If you've seen piano music you know how it's got two staffs, one for the right hand / high notes and one for the left / low notes. The staffs have a squiggle on the left end of them: the high one has a sort of loopy thing and the low one has a sort of 7 or 2 with a couple of dots. These are clefs, specifically treble clef and bass clef. They tell you what pitch the notes on the staff represent.
Technically the symbols are a G clef and an F clef: the spiral at the centre of the treble squiggle is always on a note that's a G, and the two dots on the bass are always on a note that's an F. Technically if you put the symbols on other lines you'd indicate different pitches. In practice, these days nobody does that, and 'G clef' and 'treble clef' are synonymous, as are 'F clef' and 'bass clef.'
Violin music is written in treble clef. Cello music is (mostly) written in bass clef. The range of notes you can easily play on those instruments more or less coincides with what you can easily write in those clefs without egregious use of extra ledger lines for notes above/below the staff.
There's also another clef symbol. The C clef symbol looks like a capital B, and the middle of the two humps is always on a note that's a C. It's used to indicate two uncommon clefs. Alto clef gets used for viola music and nothing else as far as I know, and tenor clef gets used for cello music that's off in the upper registers of the cello. Alto clef is... honestly I don't know what its relation to treble clef is, other than "lower," I think it's a sixth lower? Maybe a seventh? I don't read treble clef very well so I don't really know.
Tenor clef is a fifth higher than bass clef. This makes it really convenient for cello music. The strings on a cello (or violin or viola) are a fifth apart, so if you're used to reading bass clef for cello then tenor is the same thing just one string up.
A viola is a fifth lower than a violin, and an octave higher than a cello. If you put 'octave strings' on a viola, it plays the same notes as a cello. A tenor viola is an octave lower than a violin, and a fifth higher than a cello.
Which means it can natively play music in tenor clef. Hence the names.
Here endeth the classical music neepery for the day.
Antscan.info
Mar. 10th, 2026 02:54 ammetafilter_feedSeriously though, this is incredible 3D imagery of some the world's most successful critters. Ants have about the same biomass as humans, and have built about as much stuff. Short article with more info on Antscan here. Original Nature Methods paper here. Short supplementary video showing off some of the animated scans here. (40 seconds)
[Challenge #186: Imprecate] Original Fiction: 'Fatal Feasts'
Mar. 9th, 2026 07:30 pmbut_can_i_be_trusted posting in vocab_drabblesFandom: Original Fiction
Author:
but_can_i_be_trustedRating: PG-13
Word Count: 100
Characters/Pairings: None
Warnings: Disturbing imagery; mentions of warfare and mass death
Notes: Crossposted to
ficlet_zone and anythingdrabblesSummary: ...life itself's become chorelike.
( Fatal Feasts )
Hopes for lower melanoma risk as moles on children halved in 25 years
Mar. 10th, 2026 02:07 ammetafilter_feedContext: melanoma, a fatal skin cancer, is a significant problem in Australia, and there has been a major public health campaign that started in the 1980s, Slip Slop Slap, to promote slipping on a shirt, slopping on sunscreen, and slapping on a hat. It was later updated to Slip, Slop, Slap, Seek and Slide, for seeking shade and sliding on wraparound sunglasses.
My time in the treetops
Mar. 10th, 2026 01:52 ammetafilter_feedfic: it’s like connecting the dots; fic: you will leave irem.
Mar. 9th, 2026 07:53 pmpassingbuzzardsTwo recent things, Vorkosigan Saga and Fallen London:
it’s like connecting the dots — 7,900 words, Vorkosigan Saga, Gregor Vorbarra/Byerly Vorrutyer, porn with a dash of plot (interrupted under-desk cock warming, ft. politics and a little romance).
By could think and suck cock at the same time; he wouldn’t have been much good at his job if he couldn’t.
In which Byerly solves political problems while in a compromising position.
Obligatory language comment about this fic: I managed to work in a translated Russian movie quotation that’s often used colloquially, in a way which is both a) accurate to how it can be used in Russian (which is why I wanted it there, I was writing the dialogue and was like, actually, you know, the most proper reply here would be «Птица Говорун отличается умом и сообразительностью»—) AND b) makes sense in the context of the English conversation, despite lacking the memetic frame of reference that makes it usable in Russian. The ultimate bilingual win, may some Russian-speaker someday run across it and have a laugh:
…
When they parted from the kiss By said, “My word,” rather breathlessly. “Was that my reward for helping to uncover potential embezzlement of Imperial funds?”
“Something like that.” They were still standing very close together, Gregor’s hands framing By’s waist. The edge of Gregor’s mouth quirked up. “You do such a fine job of playing the strutting peacock, one could almost forget you’re not just a pretty face.”
“Oh, no. The talking bird is set apart by its wit and reasoning skills, don’t you know.”
“I’d say you’re a very high-maintenance talking bird, but you do appear to be earning your keep.” By was thoroughly charmed to discover that viewed at close range the corners of Gregor’s eyes creased when he smiled, for all that his habitually stern face had no laugh lines. […]
Also, the real-world scandal my friend suggested to me when I was like “I need something to knock off for this fic because my ability to come up with an embezzlement scandal from scratch is in the negatives” was the Crédit Mobilier scandal concerning the Union Pacific Railroad in the 1860s, which I don’t think I’d ever heard about before (or else it may have been mentioned in passing in a history class and then forgotten). What a wild ride of a Wikipedia entry!
You will leave Irem. — 1,200 words, Fallen London, The Player & The Youthful Naturalist, major spoilers for all three endings of Evolution.
Three ways of departing Irem.
(Or: whatever choice you make at the crossroads, you make it out of love.)
I rarely do anything so short-form so it was an interesting challenge to do this little coda, where every sentence really must absolutely count and sound exactly right! (Not that that’s actually any different from my approach to anything else, but in this instance it did feel almost nearer to assembling a poem, or something.) The Julian of Norwich quotation that Fallen London is so fond of using—all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well—made for the perfect double-meaning at the end, most satisfying.
My no. 1 comment to Azie as I was writing this was, how I love that English allows you to say things like, “you will have done what you will do”! Russian with its three total tenses simply cannot compete, you just can’t attain this level of specificity in that language. Not that Russian (or indeed English) strictly needs it, obviously, but I do absolutely love that English allows it, and it’s highly appropriate in this fic: in Fallen London everything that takes place in Irem is written in the future tense, so the fic’s “present” is in the future, but it also looks to a further future wherein you’re looking back towards that “present” in retrospect… People can complain about English being a horrible zombie language all they like, it remains a source of unending delight TO ME, etc.
Cal Leandros (Prompt # 95 - Asleep at the Wheel) Rumors and Reminders
Mar. 9th, 2026 08:49 pmenchanted_jae posting in ficlet_zoneAuthor:
enchanted_jaeFandom: Cal Leandros
Characters: Cal, Robin/Ishiah
Rating: PG13
Warning(s): Suggestion, first person pov (Cal's)
Word count: 100
Disclaimer: Characters are the property of Rob Thurman, et al. This drabble/fic was written for fun, not for profit.
Written for:
ficlet_zone Prompt No. 95 – Asleep at the Wheel songs. I chose: Somebody Stole His Body.Summary: Cal is a ray of darkness.
Rumors and Reminders
Conversion therapy mandated for trans inmates in federal prisons
Mar. 9th, 2026 09:42 pmpetra posting in thisfinecrew( My friend's letter, posted with permission )
Pursued by Bear?
Mar. 9th, 2026 04:50 pmagoodwinsmithSPOILER
.
.
.
.
Well, this is a two-parter season finaleeee, so on it's own it is unsatisfying because unresolved. And we also know that even though a second season has already finished filming, the show-runners are going to leave us dangling over the void at the end of Episode 10.
AND - just before I get into episode 9, I want to comment on the name of the final episode: Rubicon. Erm. I know Star Trek has a hard on for Rome, but um. There was a prophecy that Rome would be safe until the Rubicon (a strategic river) was crossed. All Roman armies returning to Rome stopped on the appropriate side of the Rubicon. Caesar brought his legions across the Rubicon, and the republic fell and became an empire (with an emperor in charge). Who, at the Academy is Caesar (I would vote for Lura Thok but this metaphor means she gets stabbed by her buds - although that means that Jett Reno is the grieving widow, and that I would like to see)? What is the sacred river in this context? Was the Federation a republic, and who will become emperor? And so on. I may regret this paragraph but this wouldn't be the first time that a cool name gets co-opted for a screamingly unrelated concept. There. I feel better.
So.. Once a fangirl has accepted Warp Drive and Transporters and Magic Snackie-Snack Windows[1], a fangirl has to just cover her ears and say "lah lah lah" every time whacko-banana technology is used. And besides which, I have excusium for how a lethal net of mines was so quickly cast around Federation space.[2]
So. I'm onboard for the idea of emotional overflow at the end of the school year, whether that is bonding rituals (Jay-Den), or efforts to start anew (SAM). I'm not up for unsupported character twists. Yes, SAM has probably had a change of heart since, for her, it has been 17 years since she last saw Genesis, but certainly she could recall that Genesis welcomed her openly. I am not happy that SAM might be turning into a type of person that does harsh things and glides by on their quirky charm.[3]
Also, I have mentioned that I was worried that Genesis was becoming the "mother" of the group because she welcomes, and accepts, and helps every time we see her. She welcomed SAM. She assisted and saved Derem while he did his heroic walk outside. She did not rat on Caleb when she found him accessing a forbidden comm panel. She watched over SAM in the pub. She helps Tarima through her drunken off-rail excursion. And blah de blah de blah. We watch her skills blossom on the bridge, and she saves her team's face in the games competition, and then admits Derem back into the team's scheme for revenge pranking. Huh. And now I am supposed to believe that the other cadets find her selfish and fearful? Guys, guys - do you even read what you write?
Mostly I am dissatisfied because episode 9 was mostly setting the stage for episode 10. Anyhoo.
[1] - I have always been disappointed that the Magic Snackie-Snack Window wasn't envisaged as the Magic Snackie-Snack Table Cloth as per my favourite fairytales. It would have been emotionally satisfying. :)
[2] - (a) replicator technology means that fully functionally super boomy mines can be made rapidly; (b) transporter technology means that such mines can be placed by ships travelling at warp; since we saw Caleb and team leave a warp travelling ship without becoming Khionian glitter barf, then it's possible; (c) the mine-bombs are so hugely destructive that they only need to be close enough that the expanding explosive corona reaches other mines.
[3] - I have a friend that I and others have forgiven and forgiven for over 50 years, and we will do it again because he/she has charm/charisma that we cannot explain or resist. Yes, we talk about it; yes, we still love him/her.
everything I know about The Pitt, I don't actually know about The Pitt
Mar. 9th, 2026 08:26 pmlannamichaelsI guess I cannot do the necessary suspension of disbelief/price of admission be in Workplace Fandoms anymore because what I've osmosised of The Pitt Season 2 is a lot of "should characters X, Y, and Z forgive Character A who was abusive and also stole patient medications and -- this part I'm unclear on but it sounds likely -- also practiced medicine in an ER while under the influence? It's very important question on if his apologies were good enough or if people should forgive him or be his friend again" and I'm like "that person should be fired from the hospital, this is not a buddy sitcom where they're all over at each other's apartments and dating each other and their warm opinions of each other matter, this is an emergency room, they are coworkers in a high-pressure high-stakes environment, not friends, he should be fired and they should never see him again and get to decide if they want to invite him to their bookclubs or poker nights or whatever, but the question of 'should they forgive him, has he done enough' is irrelevant because he should lose his medical license."
The Long Walk from Mestersvig
Mar. 10th, 2026 01:15 ammetafilter_feedPermanent Press
Mar. 10th, 2026 12:36 ammetafilter_feedDifference between perma.cc and Wayback Machine: The WBM works on a website basis rather than a webpage basis. Websites can request removal via robots.txt or DMCA. Also does not back up pages behind a paywall. The WBM is free. Difference between perma.cc and archive.today. Archive.today was for a while, a popular archiving service especially for breaching paywalls. However it is dicey: shadowy private ownership, recent deliberate content alteration, and malware DDoS attacks in 2026.
"A sumptuous feast that will delight fans of greasy and juicy cinema"
Mar. 10th, 2026 12:32 ammetafilter_feedI've just started dipping in tonight; TV Head" was a particular favourite. And while it doesn't seem to be on the Cabane streaming site, the listing led me to Astrogolem, which I can only describe as Python Gilliam animations meet Metal Hurlant. Cabane à Sang is a riff on Cabane à Sucre, which translates as "Sugar Shack," traditionally a large cabin in the woods where maple syrup is boiled off to make syrup, but beyond syrup-making, over the years in Quebec has really become a cultural touchstone for huge, huge breafasts, usually served family-style on long tables by a roaring fire, with pancakes, every breakfast meat imaginable, toast, brown beans (with pork), hot black coffee and gallons and gallons of maple syrup. You'd directly translate Cabane à Sang as "Blood Shack," but if you were paying me to transliterate into an English idiom, "All Day BloodFest" might be a better fit, or just "Blood Shed" if you want to be woodsy.
2026 Canada Roles Awards
Mar. 9th, 2026 08:29 pmjames_davis_nicoll
Canada Roles Awards seeks to celebrate the games and art created by the Canadian tabletop Roleplaying Game Industry.
2026 Canada Roles Awards
Monday afternoon politics round up with Jess
Mar. 10th, 2026 12:03 amchopwood_carrywater_feedThank you for tuning into my live video! I hope it gave you a bit of a lift. Feel free to share if anyone you know wants a recap of what’s going on with politics this week!
Oh, one more thing—I referred to the Virginia vote as Issue One. That is INCORRECT! I misspoke—the bill has no number. It will be the only item on the ballot and it’s just being referred to as “the redistricting initiative.” Please forgive my absentmindedness. If you want to learn more about it you can go here.
Thanks, all! Enjoy!
Jess
Divining Destiny: Chapters 4 and 5
Mar. 9th, 2026 07:28 pmsenmutChapters: 5/5
Fandom: Forgotten Realms, The Legend of Drizzt Series - R. A. Salvatore
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Characters: Vierna Do'Urden, Zaknafein Do'Urden, Drizzt Do'Urden, Ensemble
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Typical Violence, Fratricide, Murder, flashfic, Cross-Posted from Archive Of Our Own (AO3), Time Travel
Summary:
Thwarted in escaping with the two males she cares for at Graduation, Vierna sets her goals differently.
Only, Drizzt sets things in motion the wrong way.
Chapter 4: Drizzt's Chosen Path
Eilistraee rested in the meadow, laying on Her back, listening to the night and Her sparring partner as he got his own breathing back under control. She almost wished to keep him here, to have his company where it was safer for Her to exist, but he was mortal, and deserved a chance to truly live free.
"Father manipulated time in setting you back to save the Lore Keeper," She admitted, once She was cooler and he seemed calm.
"I decided that had to have happened given His surety in the circumstances. I know it is one avenue of magic, considered among the riskiest."
"It's only a few decades, but time has to resettle… and I mean to offer you a chance to be part of that resettling, Drizzt." Eilistraee let Her fingertips touch his. "Like it or not, when She touched your life string at birth, with My Brother touching your sister's so young, it has put you closer to Destiny than many mortals can bear.
"Would you like to use that to protect other drow like you, to be there for My Chosen as a protector?"
Drizzt considered, letting the night sounds take over around them, and then turned his head to look at Her. "I would be with ones like me, to keep learning, and helping them survive in a world that fears and hates us?
"I can do this, as it will let me continue forming as who I wish to be in something closer to safety rather than wandering with only Guen."
"And possibly Szann from time to time," She said, eyes dancing with the mirth of how besotted the cath sidhe was with Her young friend. He did not pray to her; he prayed to none, so far. But She continued to hope that in time he would be willing to ask boons of Her, to further his ability to help others.
"I think I can handle having visits from a fey cat," he agreed to that, smiling brightly. "Yes, Eilistraee. Choose the point for me, and let me go be of aid to others. I have seen enough here to believe that You do truly mean nothing but aid to those like me."
Despite that most of Her fellow deities would be stung by the continued doubting and measuring against a mortal's — a child at best! — ideas of right and wrong, Eilistraee was touched by being allowed that much belief from him.
"I have those calling to Me," She said as She reluctantly stood. "But I will see to it soon, Drizzt. Enjoy the night."
"I shall."
The small group of drow that traveled at present with Qilué Veladorn were some of her most adept, fiercest priestesses and fighters. An impression of being watched ghosted over their senses for several nights, but in a world that would rather see them dead, that was not so unusual.
What was, just after the sun had cleared the horizon and they were considering rest, was the appearance of a lone drow male.
Inside their sentry line.
That he was not close enough to harm a single person was the only saving grace in their eyes, as a full alert went through all of them.
"Peace," the lone male said, using the variant of that word they had made for themselves in their language that knew it not at all. "I seek the First Sister, to offer my arms and service for a time."
"What makes you think you have the right?"
"I claim no right," he said back to the one who had spoken, one of the priestesses. "But I have skills I am willing to offer… and showed by evading your sentries. I have a willingness to learn more, as I have only learned the elven language, and I am told there is one called 'Common' I should know.
"Most of all, I wish to learn the surface as it calls to me in my heart, as the Dark Maiden calls to you."
"Is he touched by madness?" one of the fighters asked then, before the First Sister rose from her pallet, towering over all of those with her, and came forward.
"No. He is touched by our Lady Herself… and another?" As she spoke, she approached the male with no fear.
He inclined his head slightly to her. "A deal was made to remove me from the Underdark, between She and Her Twin. In divining why neither of Them could truly perceive me, She invited Her Father to look into matters.
"So I no doubt bear at least some of His touch, given my armor, pack, and weapons were gifts from Him to perform a task with."
"Truth," the first cleric said, both grudgingly and with some trepidation. Even though the First Sister regularly dealt with Eilistraee, and some human goddess, none of them knew of one who had been touched by an elven god not their Lady.
"So I know," the First Sister said, smiling as she came close enough to offer her hands in greeting. "You have given my Lady joy; welcome, cousin."
"Drizzt Do'Urden." He gave her his hands, squeezing hers without fear.
"Qilué Veladorn. I look forward to seeing your dance, and my hunters will aid you in learning the surface as it is here in the Material Plane."
"I am glad to be able to give aid for a good cause," he assured her, before walking with her into the camp to meet those present in this band.
Elkantar cheered young Rylla on from where he was sprawled on the ground. The half-human was possibly the only one of the fighters that would, someday, match their new fighter in any way. He rolled to his butt, keeping eyes on this grand melee… and the one that had become the center of it all.
Drizzt Do'Urden was an enigma. He'd spent an unknown amount of time in the Dark Maiden's realm, personally handled a quest for Corellon, been shrouded by Lolth Herself at his birth, and been raised by a priestess of Vhaeraun.
None of those deities held the fighter's heart, and Elkantar had been surprised to learn his escape from the Underdark had come before he even turned thirty-one years of age, making his skill simply impossible. That he embraced these free-for-all skill contests, or the one-on-one spars with a true smile of joy never stopped pulling Elkantar's heart strings.
Every other fighter in their band had already lost their weapons or been tripped out of the designated area. Elkantar slowly recognized that Drizzt had worked to insure Rylla was the last fighter, handling the few fighters — like Elkantar himself — that had the experience and skill needed to put her out of it.
"Too much anger," he heard Drizzt say, when the double scimitars trapped the short sword, pulling it out of Rylla's grasp. She refocused her stance a moment, then took the step back, and saluted with her dagger across her chest to surrender.
"How can I not be angry?" she retorted.
"By remembering that holding your anger at the people behind you? Still gives them power."
Those calm, quiet words held empathy and knowing alike… and were just what Rylla needed to hear, to help move one more step forward on her own path of healing.
"Make me better," Rylla said, half a demand, half a plea.
"I will give you every bit of training my father gave me… though maybe with fewer unexpected naps."
Corellon considered the actions of His Daughter, and ultimately decided He was amused. He had, after all, opened the door with His own manipulation. Giving the Chosen a man who had the technique, if not the experience, to increase her people's ability to carve out a space for themselves even earlier could only be a good foil against the drow of both Lolth and Vhaeraun.
He tried to see ahead, to make out the possibilities more clearly… and found the mists of time past the point when Drizzt had originally been taken from the Underdark still opaque.
"At least none of Us should be bored for a time," He mused, going back to listen to His own followers for a time. His Lore Keeper was being a force of nature in his own way, keeping new ideas fresh alongside the ancient ways. It might prove interesting, when the drow struck out on his own, to see about a meeting for them…
Chapter 5: Family Reunion
Dinin had proven to have a good hand for how to keep their outpost incognito, on top of the politics of the moment, and out of strife with either Vhaeraunite faction. It helped that both of those groups wanted to end each other's influence, but were constrained by some strange religious tenet from just killing one another.
At least openly, as Dinin learned when a priest was murdered in the night market, supposedly by ruffians.
What he did not appreciate was having to be schooled by Jarlaxle's people on a third drow vector, a bunch of idiots that thought peace and living in harmony was the better way of life. He decided they could be ignored as they only came once a quarter to trade —
— until he heard that a band of six drow from the mercantile company faction had been sent running with minor injuries… and none of their weapons.
"I thought they weren't a threat," Dinin muttered.
Karolz shook his head, a much older fighter, one that had been recruited in this city long before. He hated leading, didn't have a head for it, but had accepted Dinin in that role.
"Those Dancers usually avoid a fight. But once every hand of years or so, some braggart decides to test either their Sword Mistress, or Purple Eyes. And this time, it's Purple Eyes with the caravan."
Purple Eyes. Dinin made a gesture against ill-luck, still remembering the one time he'd seen his younger brother in a true temper. He had no idea what had happened to Drizzt, only that whatever it had been had not broken the peace between Zaknafein and Vierna. Dinin knew that meant Drizzt had not been killed; he wasn't as stupid as some people thought he was, and Zak had been odd about the boy.
"Make sure none of ours pick a fight, or cross paths with the mercantiles, hmm? They're going to be more apt to rise to the bait for this."
That got a chuckle and nod… before Karolz watched Dinin secure his cloak over his armor and head out to see for himself.
Dinin found the Dancers easily enough, and decided they looked very tame. He didn't see anyone that really looked like they could give him trouble in a fight, but he also didn't see anyone with purple eyes. Maybe Karolz was wrong and one of the women wearing a sword was this so-called Sword Mistress.
He decided it had been a waste of time to come down and see, turned down a different path to begin his way back —
— and then he did see purple, a moment before he saw all of his brother. The small signs of maturity were settled in around the eyes and ears, while Drizzt stood straight with those curved swords of his still in their scabbards. Fine mithral chain glinted under the over tunic, and a metal face-guard held the mane of hair back, in the same fashion Zaknafein wore his.
"Hello, brother," Drizzt said, actually quirking a half-smile on his lips. "I never expected to see you this far from the city."
"Umm, you… Abyss, I never thought to see you again at all!" Dinin said. "I don't want a fight; I came to see if the rumor of Purple Eyes had anything to do with you, yes, but… I really am just evaluating the threats to my own situation."
Drizzt laughed. "You must be the new one watching Bregan D'Aerthe, then. I'd heard there were several new people since my last visit here." He must have read the confusion in Dinin's face, because he shrugged. "I got caught up in time magic. I've lived in the area above for a few decades now.
"Will you tell me of our sister, and the Weapon Master?"
Dinin nodded. "Trust me enough to come back to the warehouse we keep? Or should we take a meal at the Dimmed Lantern?"
"I won't go so far as to say trust," Drizzt said slyly, "but I prefer to be out of the public eye to discuss this, and I am well known at the Dimmed Lantern."
"Does everyone call you Purple Eyes?"
"Mostly," Drizzt agreed. He fell in step with Dinin, and Dinin noted his brother already knew the path. What had his experiences been that Drizzt actually seemed cognizant of power structures? Did he really want to know?
Ultimately, Dinin decided he did not.
Drizzt relaxed in the deep tub across from the one Laeral Silverhand was in. As the Silverhand that most paid attention to the treacheries in Skullport, Drizzt had come to her to talk about what he had learned this time. Their friendship went back almost to the beginning of his time above with Qilué, as the sisters were very close.
"So my elder brother manages the in-theory Lolthite faction over there. Honestly, the mercenary company he belongs to worships chaos, money, and power, I believe, from what I have seen of them in the past. Through him, I know that our House in Menzoberranzan fell within the last few years.
"But, through his own sources, he knows that my father and sister have established themselves in a a place called Rilauven."
"As best I can remember, that is a minor city somewhere under the Neverwinter," Laeral offered, lounging as nonchalantly as her friend. Dual tubs were almost as good as a large bathing pool.
"I planned to see what the Marauders could tell me of it," Drizzt said, his voice having that note of seeking adventure.
"Planning to go see for yourself? I remind you that your nature is antithetical in all ways to what you would find."
Drizzt chuckled. "I can charm a lizard or a bat to carry a note inside, if I choose to go that way. And your amulet very nicely masks me, when I choose to wear it."
Laeral looked over. "You miss your father, even your sister, don't you?"
"Yes."
"Then I will just say, 'be careful', and I will definitely reach out and knock on your skull in half a year, to be sure you are breathing. If not, the Marauders will be hired to find your body so Qi can bring you back to us."
He shook his head at her, but he had no intention of dying. He just needed to know if his sister was as aware as he was, of the threads of destiny they had unknowingly wrapped themselves in.
Vierna was not unaccustomed to bats bringing her messages. What she was unaccustomed to, was not feeling the touch of her Lord's spellwork on them, instead brushing something unknown when she tried to determine who the sender had been. She also did not see any message to take from it. When she focused fully on it, the bat fluttered just out of reach and roosted.
"If you or father would come, I am awaiting outside the gate your people use to go Above for trade."
The bat, having spoken with her brother's voice, did a small shake of itself and fluttered back out of Vierna's very surprised presence.
Needing to have time to wrap her head around that, the ability to blank her emotions, she sent her messenger spider to her father. The pirate spiders she had brought with her were thriving, especially as they killed any other spiders that dared cross the wards, protecting them from Lolthite spies.
Several minutes later, Zak strode in, an eyebrow raised. "Sometimes I worry your spiders fetching me could be omens, daughter."
She laughed, a little bit more brittle than she meant to. "Something odd, but not… bad? Maybe?
"A bat came and delivered a spoken message in Drizzt's voice, saying he was outside the trade gate to the Surface, asking if one of us would come meet with him. The magic on the bat was unlike any I have felt, and the accent was correct."
Zak frowned, then considered a long moment. "Are you still unable — yes, you are. Of course you already tried to reach him that way." He hitched a shoulder. "I suppose I am taking a walk. Put the undead into defensive positions, just in case."
"Of course, Father. If it is… and he will come… please bring him in. I can explain it as an intelligence seeking."
That got a laugh, but Zak nodded. "If that boy knows anything of use, I will be shocked."
Zak moved out of the gate uncontested, as he was known to sometimes forage for his daughter's wild needs. In the years since arriving here, they had made a solid reputation as fair but powerful. The only true trouble they'd had was from Lolthites seeking to undo the Masked Traitor's prominence, but Vierna remained high in the favor of her Lord.
Once he cleared the perimeter of the city's awareness, he knew he was not alone, and had to look sharply… before his son melted out of a shadow.
"Hello, Father," Drizzt called, breaking into a genuine smile. Even as jaded as Zak was, everything matched… except the age. This man was too mature to his eyes, and he remained poised, ready to engage the trap so his daughter stayed safe.
"Hmm, not so certain of that."
Drizzt threw his head back and laughed, before spreading his hands wide from his body. "Blame your daughter, then, as she put me in the hands of a goddess and set me on a strange path that had time magic in it."
Zak let an eyebrow rise at those words.
"Would a fetch know you nearly killed me rather than let me go become a drow in all truth? Or that you broke my jaw to keep me from exposing both of us to the Matron? Or that I almost caused your death the very night Vierna became Matron?"
"It might… but I think I might believe you." Zak beckoned. "Your sister wishes to see you as well, peacefully. The city is not a closed one, and if you're still so strange, she'll shove it off as getting what you know of other places."
"Oh, I am strange, even to those that agree with my views on life," Drizzt said, still smiling so openly, and Zak reached out as he came close, gripping his shoulders.
"I am glad you stayed strange, and alive!"
Drizzt leaned in, resting his forehead on his father's. "Vierna saved me by doing as she did, and now I wish to repay that, with a warning and words of my life."
"Then let us go into the city, my son, and hear what you have to say."
Vierna hugged her little brother fiercely, taking in all the changes as Zak had done. He was dressed sensibly in a piwafwi of fair construction, had adamantine blades in plain scabbards, and everything had the right feel of the Underdark.
"You cannot possibly have been in the Underdark since I set you in safety!" she pointed out.
"No, but we keep such things for movement below the faerzress," Drizzt said. "As I do aid sometimes, I had everything I needed in one of our caches.
"When Dinin told me where you two had gone, I retrieved them for my journey. One that is formerly of House Vaer here aided me in swift travel," he added.
"Dinin's in Skullport, last I knew," Zak said.
"He is, and thriving," Drizzt agreed. "We have an understanding, as I have no wish to be involved heavily in drow things."
"You mentioned a warning," Zak prodded, once they were all comfortable.
Drizzt sobered up and looked at Vierna. "Do you have any idea how tangled in divine events we now are, sister? The choice you made, to save me, prodded the Twins toward aid for one another, when He was attacked. I have been given quests by Her and by others of the pantheon in my time-tossed decades."
She slowly frowned, but his words rang true against some of the dreams that had come since she settled here.
"I can see the shape of that now that you say it," she admitted. "Your thoughts?"
"Something lies ahead. Neither of my patron deities know what, but more and more, I am drawn to larger threats, sharpening all of my skills and the magic I touch as a kind of divine-touched fighter."
Vierna had to rake her eyes over him at that claim, but… she did not know all things of the surface yet.
"Both of my children using divine magic now. There's a strangeness," Zak said in a slow drawl.
That made them all laugh.
"I suppose, little brother, I am going to ask you to stay long enough to get sending stones for you and father to carry, and work out a timing for us to keep in touch," Vierna said. "So we can at least warn one another of things that come to pass."
"I am already looking forward to the spars," Drizzt said, agreeing easily. "Just tell me how to not make trouble here, and I will be a good guest.
"I've kept an open mind toward your god, even if I question some of His idiot followers' ways."
"Well, some of them are idiots, but I think that is true of all religions," Vierna agreed, pleased.
Vhaeraun smiled in His own realm. Allies, when the coming storm arrived, were not to be dismissed out of hand. And, if the siblings forged a bond across alignment, then perhaps…
… well, He knew He was still deeply fond of His own Twin. Perhaps in time, He might yet convince Her to see His way of thinking.
He would keep His defenses up, and all of His craft tuned to the danger ahead for all of the gods.
Perfect Bang Bang Shrimp
Mar. 9th, 2026 11:48 pminspired_taste_rss_feed
Bang Bang Sauce
Mar. 9th, 2026 11:27 pminspired_taste_rss_feed
Has Hollywood golden boy Timothée Chalamet lost his shine?
Mar. 10th, 2026 12:09 ambbcnewsworld_feedDay 1875: “I have a plan for everything.”
Mar. 9th, 2026 04:34 pmwtfjht_feed
Today in one sentence: Trump claimed that fighting in Iran was “very complete, pretty much” and would end “very soon,” but then threatened to strike Iran “at a much, much harder level” if Tehran disrupted oil supplies; Trump demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender” even as a classified U.S. intelligence assessment concluded that even a large-scale military assault was unlikely to lead to regime change in Iran; the U.S. economy lost 92,000 jobs in February, its third loss in five months, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.4%; the FBI subpoenaed records from the Arizona Senate’s 2021 review of roughly 2.1 million Maricopa County ballots; Trump threatened to not sign any legislation until Congress passes the SAVE America Act; a plaque honoring law enforcement officers who defended the Capitol on Jan. 6, was installed at 4 a.m. Saturday – three years after Congress required it by law and with no ceremony or announcement; and the Justice Department released three FBI interview summaries it had withheld from the Epstein files, including one by a woman alleging that Trump sexually assaulted her as a minor in the 1980s after Jeffrey Epstein introduced them.
1/ Trump claimed that fighting in Iran was “very complete, pretty much” and would end “very soon,” but then threatened to strike Iran “at a much, much harder level” if Tehran disrupted oil supplies. The White House and other G7 countries have discussed a possible coordinated release of crude oil from strategic reserves after Brent crude briefly spiked to nearly $120 a barrel — its highest since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The U.S. is also waiving some oil-related sanctions to ease prices, including a waiver allowing certain countries to buy Russian oil. Trump, however, dismissed the war’s impact on global energy markets as “a very small price to pay” for “safety and peace” while saying it was “too soon” to talk about seizing Iran’s oil. He added: “I have a plan for everything. You’ll be very happy.” (Bloomberg / New York Times / Wall Street Journal / Washington Post / New York Post / NBC News / Axios / CBS News / Reuters / The Hill / Associated Press / Politico / CNN / CNBC)
2/ Trump demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender” even as a classified U.S. intelligence assessment concluded that even a large-scale military assault was unlikely to lead to regime change in Iran. The National Intelligence Council report, completed before the war began, found that Iran’s establishment would follow succession protocols to preserve continuity of power even if Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed. Trump, nevertheless, said there would be “no deal” except “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER,” adding that the war should end with “the selection of a GREAT & ACCEPTABLE Leader(s).” (New York Times / Washington Post / Bloomberg / NBC News / Politico / Washington Post / New York Times / CNN)
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Russia provided Iran with intelligence since the U.S.-Israeli war started, including satellite and other targeting data on U.S. warships, aircraft, radar, and military personnel. The material indicates that Moscow is sharing information, not directing Iranian strikes. When asked about the intelligence sharing, Trump responded: “What a stupid question that is to be asking at this time.” (Washington Post / Associated Press / New York Times / NBC News)
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Two men were charged with attempting to support ISIS and use of a weapon of mass destruction after throwing two homemade bombs during a protest outside New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s residence. Neither device detonated and no one was injured. Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, told investigators they had hoped to cause more damage “than the Boston Marathon bombing,” which caused “only three deaths.” (New York Times / CNN / NBC News / Bloomberg)
3/ The U.S. economy lost 92,000 jobs in February, its third loss in five months, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.4%. The losses were spread across nearly every major sector, and downward revisions to December and January brought job growth over the last three months to effectively zero. A Kaiser Permanente nurses strike sidelined about 31,000 health care workers, pulling the sector down from a gain of 116,000 in January to a loss of 28,000, while manufacturing cut 12,000 jobs, construction 11,000, and leisure and hospitality 27,000. The White House called the report a “surprise.” (Wall Street Journal / CNN / CNBC / NBC News / New York Times / Bloomberg)
4/ The FBI subpoenaed records from the Arizona Senate’s 2021 review of roughly 2.1 million Maricopa County ballots, expanding the Trump administration’s criminal investigation of the 2020 presidential election beyond Georgia. Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen said he received and complied with the federal grand jury subpoena last week, turning over records tied to the Senate’s review of Maricopa County. The physical ballots have since been destroyed under state records retention laws, but the Senate retained digital images, absentee envelopes, vote tallies, and server software from the audit, which confirmed Biden won the state. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said the election had already been certified, litigated, and confirmed, and called the inquiry “the weaponization of federal law enforcement.” (New York Times / CNN / Politico / NBC News / Axios / Washington Post)
5/ Trump threatened to not sign any legislation until Congress passes the SAVE America Act, a bill that would require proof of citizenship and photo ID to vote in federal elections. “Go for the gold,” Trump wrote on social media, demanding that the legislation “must be done immediately” and “supersedes everything else.” The House passed the bill last month, but it needs 60 votes in the Senate to overcome a filibuster. Democrats said they’ll block the measure, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune has resisted pressure from Trump to change the filibuster rules. The standoff puts other pending legislation at risk, including a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security, which has been partially shut down since last month. (NBC News / Democracy Docket / Axios / CNBC / Reuters / The Hill / Mother Jones / The Guardian)
The 2026 midterms are in 239 days; the 2028 presidential election is in 974 days.
✏️ Notables.
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A House Republican changed his party affiliation to independent, cutting Speaker Mike Johnson’s majority to a single vote. Rep. Kevin Kiley of California said he’ll continue to caucus with Republicans for “the remainder of this term” for committee and administrative purposes, but wouldn’t commit to supporting Johnson on procedural votes. He attributed the switch to California’s mid-decade redistricting, which turned his seat more Democratic and prompted him to seek reelection as an independent. (Washington Post / Axios / CBS News)
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A federal judge ruled that Kari Lake’s appointment to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media was unlawful, voiding the mass layoffs and other actions she carried out at Voice of America. Judge Royce Lamberth found that Lake violated both the Constitution’s appointments clause and the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, writing that her authority amounted to “an unlawful effort to transform Lake into the CEO of U.S. Agency for Global Media in all but name.” Lake, who never received Senate confirmation, called Lamberth “an activist judge” and said she would appeal. (The Hill / CBS News / New York Times / CNN)
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Anthropic sued the Trump administration, alleging the Pentagon retaliated against the company for refusing to let the military use its AI without restrictions on autonomous weapons and domestic surveillance. The supply-chain risk designation, a label normally reserved for companies tied to foreign adversaries, effectively blocks Anthropic from Pentagon contracts and threatens hundreds of millions of dollars in broader federal business. Anthropic filed suits in two courts, arguing the government violated its First Amendment rights, exceeded its statutory authority, and bypassed required procurement procedures. The White House, meanwhile, called Anthropic “a radical left, woke company” trying to dictate military operations. (ABC News / NBC News / Bloomberg / Politico / Wall Street Journal)
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Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. are investing in a drone company seeking Pentagon contracts following the Trump administration’s ban on Chinese drones and a $1.1 billion domestic procurement initiative. Powerus is also pursuing Ukrainian drone technology to manufacture and sell under American branding to meet Pentagon requirements for domestically made weapons. The Trumps’ investment vehicles, American Ventures and Dominari Securities, are financing the deal alongside Unusual Machines, a drone components firm where Trump Jr. serves as a shareholder and advisory board member. (Wall Street Journal)
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A plaque honoring law enforcement officers who defended the Capitol on Jan. 6, was installed at 4 a.m. Saturday – three years after Congress required it by law and with no ceremony or announcement. House Speaker Mike Johnson had blocked the installation, calling the 2022 law “not implementable,” until the Senate passed a unanimous resolution in January directing the Architect of the Capitol to display it on the Senate side. Officer Daniel Hodges, who sued over the delay, called the installation “a fine stopgap” and said his lawsuit would continue, noting that the plaque’s location and format fall short of what the law requires. (Washington Post / NPR / NBC News / CNN)
-
The Justice Department released three FBI interview summaries it had withheld from the Epstein files, including one by a woman alleging that Trump sexually assaulted her as a minor in the 1980s after Jeffrey Epstein introduced them. Officials said the documents were mistakenly coded as duplicates, but didn’t explain why only the three interviews that named Trump were missing from the initial release. Trump claimed that the Epstein files had “totally exonerated” him, while the White House called the allegations “completely baseless accusations, backed by zero credible evidence.” Meanwhile, 37 pages of related records remain absent from the public database. (NPR / New York Times / Politico / CNN / Wall Street Journal)
- Three years ago today: Day 779: "Undermining the American public's confidence."
- Four years ago today: Day 414: "We must continue to fight."
- Five years ago today: Day 49: "110% confident."
- Six years ago today: Day 1145: "Nobody is trying to minimize this."
- Eight years ago today: Day 414: But his emails.
- 9 years ago today: Day 49: Flurry.
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Erin Reads: Pet Shop of Horrors, Collector’s Edition (volume 2, chapters 9-10)
Mar. 9th, 2026 08:09 pmerinptahContinued liveblog as I read Seven Seas’ new print edition of PSOH, and sometimes make comparisons to the original Tokyopop translation.
I’m posting the individual reactions on Mastodon and Bluesky, then rounding them up in the blog. Previous roundups in my PSOH fandom tag. You can pick up the books with my affiliate links here.
When rounding up this post, I expected it to be shorter than the last one…then I actually checked the word count, and it’s almost exactly the same. Commented about fewer panels, but I carried on for longer, so it balanced out.
Were You Born to Love Music?
Mar. 9th, 2026 11:30 pmnautilus_feedHow you respond to art—from poetry, to visual art, to music—may be partly written in your DNA
The post Were You Born to Love Music? appeared first on Nautilus.
phys_social_feedBook retrieval
Mar. 10th, 2026 12:01 ambeccaelizabethFrom another point of view I am a muppet who knocked a book down behind the book case and, after several not great ideas did not pan out, finally had to empty the shelves and try and lift the whole case out.
Which did not actually work.
So I have retrieved the book by tipping it as far out and forwards as it would deign to go and using the grabby stick.
I think the cover will even go flat again once I leave it under a bunch of other books for a while, which by this point is a best case scenario.
... it's fiiiiine, just believe it is a perfectly ordinary book that you wouldn't personally miss if it did that...
After a quick google, as it turns out, I could get a brand new copy right now for a maximum of £11
which next time I may try to search Before all the shenanigans.
... I think possibly I did the thing where I can see the next step to try and lose sight of if I personally at quarter to midnight need to try it.
*sigh*
Is okay, is all done now, bar the refilling...
Sit and watch my TV set
Mar. 9th, 2026 08:00 pmsovay
phys_breaking_feedShoulda stood in bed
Mar. 9th, 2026 07:38 pmrolanniFirefly and Rook did their best to get me to go back to bed this morning, but I was adamant.
Well. My weather-delayed CookUnity order arrived five minutes ago, and all the meals, of course, are "use by 3/11." So, I'm guessing I'll find out how well a couple of these freeze.
The ice packs were still solid and the meals are cold, so I'm guessing they'll be OK to eat.
Today was not the most productive day ever. I should actually have gone back to bed this morning, but I fixed that by taking a two hour nap. Still not feeling top o'the world, but at least I'm less weepy.
Tomorrow, is Errands, finishing up with needlework.
The ice in the driveway is gone, just in time for the temps to plunge into the high 30sF on Wednesday. Now, I need to figure out what parts of this enormous, but extremely well-insulated, box are recyclable.
On that note -- everybody have a good evening. I'll check in tomorrow.
Glaswegian matters and beyond
Mar. 9th, 2026 09:16 pmmtbcGlasgow has a great city center, rather walkable and with the subway for longer hops. Next to Central Station is a fancy building some decades older than the converted Victorian mill that I live in. At least, there was, until a vape store somehow caught fire. Now there are cordoned-off streets, the smell of smoke, and a considerable number of sad, shocked people and even more rather inconvenienced ones.
I have no love for vape stores in the first place, I tend to avoid patronizing establishments that expand their range to vapes. Given vapes' propensity to catch fire in waste processing centers, etc., goodness knows who thought it a good idea to allow a vape shop to locate next to a critical transportation hub in a historic landmark whose construction substantially predates fire safety codes. Perhaps we shall find out, with luck when I am not feeling grumpy and vengeful.
My commute may be quite unaffected: when I pass close to that area, I'm in a subway tunnel on my way to Queen Street, the other main railway station; I hope that tomorrow's train to Edinburgh isn't overly crowded by passengers displaced from Central which won't be open yet.
I refueled our car this evening, I figured that gas prices aren't dropping anytime soon. In probably 2003 I tried holding off filling the car with gas, back when I drove an old Ford Crown Victoria (with around a seventy litre fuel tank), but eventually I had to give in and pay the higher prices. At least, with mostly just driving around the city in our hybrid in the near term, today's gas should last us for a good while.
Evaluating landing sites for China's manned moon mission
Mar. 9th, 2026 07:20 pmphys_breaking_feedRaccoons solve puzzles for the fun of it, new study finds
Mar. 9th, 2026 07:00 pmphys_breaking_feedMonday Word: Iblis
Mar. 9th, 2026 06:48 pmstonepicnicking_okapi posting in 1word1daynoun
an evil spirit or devil, the chief of the wicked jinn (Isalmic).
examples
1. But Satan, or Iblis in his Muslim incarnation, a redheaded wisecracker who claims to be Jacob’s dearest friend, argues for a radical intervention that can open Jacob’s “strictured heart”, allowing him to feel and heal. "Rabih Alameddine’s new novel explores the ordeal of remembering." The Economist. 29 Nov 2016.
2. Al-Hijr also repeats the story of Iblis, the devil, who refuses to bow to human beings, and since they are made of mud, tempts them with the material distractions of a muddy world. "American Quran is an Old/New Masterpiece." The Washington Post. 21 Jan 2016.
origin
Arabic, إِبْلِيس
---
I discovered this recently when I happened upon this funny Islamic cat Youtube channel.
New Medieval Books: Othon de Grandson
Mar. 9th, 2026 10:30 pmmedievalists_rss_feedNewly Discovered Document Confirms a ‘Legendary’ African King
Mar. 9th, 2026 07:33 pmmedievalists_rss_feedGene edit makes probiotic safer for immunocompromised patients
Mar. 9th, 2026 06:40 pmphys_breaking_feedphys_environment_feedMy day
Mar. 9th, 2026 10:43 pmcosmolinguistI had a lot to do today: a kinda tricky day at work, walking Teddy, making dinner, visiting a friend, and I wanted to go to the gym.
And I did all of it! And some chores like moving heavy things around, finalizing the grocery delivery that'll come tomorrow, and doing laundry.
Feels good.
Baby Boomers Are a Transition Generation in Our Longevity Crisis
Mar. 9th, 2026 09:30 pmnautilus_feedLifespan in the United States plateaued over a decade ago
The post Baby Boomers Are a Transition Generation in Our Longevity Crisis appeared first on Nautilus.
