peeling off my boots and chaps
Oct. 1st, 2025 10:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
the_siobhanI went to Montreal for a long weekend of hanging out with friends I haven't seen for a few years. Man, I had no idea how much I needed that, just being out with my people and cracking jokes and being stupid. I came home feeling a million times better about my life.
The entire trip was a much higher risk level than I'm usually comfortable with and it didn't help that we're in an infection spike. (OR that Ontario doesn't have the latest boosters out yet.) But I loaded myself up on mouthwash and Profi and the weather was nice enough that we did most of our drinking on patios and eating in restaurants with big open windows. I feel fine and I'll wait a couple of weeks before I'm around my vulnerable father and I'll test in the meantime.
Yesterday was my first day back. I took Lord Brock to the groomers because he's been developing mats in his fur again and they had to shave most of his hindquarters. (Mental note: Start taking him in for a lion cut every spring going forward, because it will be easier on him than trying to get the mats out after the fact.) Then I picked up my new orthotics, emptied my suitcase, and did laundry.
Today I put away laundry, took Lord Brock to the vet for his follow-up bloodwork, got groceries and broke down a huge stack of cardboard boxes and moved them out of my house. Then I went to the big hardware store across town with a tape measure and I think I've found some lights that will fit in the basement. I also picked up some trim to put under the doors because the contractor just left the big flooring gaps between rooms uncovered.
Tomorrow I'm back to work. The daughter is coming over in the afternoon tomorrow and Friday, so we'll work on getting the light fixtures in and fixing the wonky electrical boxes. If we can get that finished I can do the last bit of cleaning in the basement on Saturday and Sunday.
Am I forgetting something? I'm pretty sure I'm forgetting something.
I think taking the weekend off was a good idea. I feel like I've gotten a lot of my drive back.
The entire trip was a much higher risk level than I'm usually comfortable with and it didn't help that we're in an infection spike. (OR that Ontario doesn't have the latest boosters out yet.) But I loaded myself up on mouthwash and Profi and the weather was nice enough that we did most of our drinking on patios and eating in restaurants with big open windows. I feel fine and I'll wait a couple of weeks before I'm around my vulnerable father and I'll test in the meantime.
Yesterday was my first day back. I took Lord Brock to the groomers because he's been developing mats in his fur again and they had to shave most of his hindquarters. (Mental note: Start taking him in for a lion cut every spring going forward, because it will be easier on him than trying to get the mats out after the fact.) Then I picked up my new orthotics, emptied my suitcase, and did laundry.
Today I put away laundry, took Lord Brock to the vet for his follow-up bloodwork, got groceries and broke down a huge stack of cardboard boxes and moved them out of my house. Then I went to the big hardware store across town with a tape measure and I think I've found some lights that will fit in the basement. I also picked up some trim to put under the doors because the contractor just left the big flooring gaps between rooms uncovered.
Tomorrow I'm back to work. The daughter is coming over in the afternoon tomorrow and Friday, so we'll work on getting the light fixtures in and fixing the wonky electrical boxes. If we can get that finished I can do the last bit of cleaning in the basement on Saturday and Sunday.
Am I forgetting something? I'm pretty sure I'm forgetting something.
I think taking the weekend off was a good idea. I feel like I've gotten a lot of my drive back.
covid and flu tests
Oct. 1st, 2025 01:54 pmredbirdBona Fide Masks currently has covid tests and combination flu+covid tests on sale at a good price. With a discount code they sent me, BFM15, I just paid $41 for a total of six covid+flu combo tests (three boxes of two), with free shipping. For both kinds of test, they list the expiration dates. The website is https://www.bonafidemasks.com I've bought KN95 masks from them; this is the first time I've ordered tests from them, but the company has been reliable.
This is probably only relevant to people who live in the US.
I still have a few of the free covid tests we got from the city of Boston last fall, but these tests are well past their expiration dates. The city stopped giving them away over the summer, and I don't know if they're going to restart the program.
This is probably only relevant to people who live in the US.
I still have a few of the free covid tests we got from the city of Boston last fall, but these tests are well past their expiration dates. The city stopped giving them away over the summer, and I don't know if they're going to restart the program.
art post: soul bond, from The Monsters We Become
Sep. 29th, 2025 10:42 pmelynneI apparently saved this picture earlier but never actually posted it so it could be linked elsewhere, so--here it is! ( Read more... )
Minipoem time
Sep. 28th, 2025 04:03 pmkiyaSeahorse
I carried you
Even though
I—
I am no woman;
(I will love all things that grow
And are,
And am,
Not barren)
You taught my roots to drink
My trunk to span realms
My branches to embrace the stars:
We were the world,
Together.
You were never as heavy
As how
The world
Saw me.
Phone Question
Sep. 28th, 2025 07:41 pmludyHave got my Open Reach appointment to have my phone (land)line switched over to Digital Voice this week.
Asking people who have already been switched - do the engineers typically come into your home or is it like regular phone repair where it mostly happens outside but you need to be around just in case? And if they do come in do they just go to your router or do they need access to every phone socket?
Asking people who have already been switched - do the engineers typically come into your home or is it like regular phone repair where it mostly happens outside but you need to be around just in case? And if they do come in do they just go to your router or do they need access to every phone socket?
Finally! Why It’s Harder to Hear Dialogue These Days
Sep. 27th, 2025 01:20 pmjesse_the_k posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
access_fandomThe 20 Thousand Hertz podcast dives deep into Why is movie dialogue so hard to understand?, providing six possible reasons why more and more people are turning on subtitles/captions for movies, TV, and the streaming services we use to watch them. Reason six comes with a solution!
Dallas Taylor, 20k.org’s founder, points out video games have solved this problem: most permit users to individually adjust the loudness settings for
- music
- sound effects
- dialogue
Movie sound, on the other hand, is designed to be impressive in a great big theater. But of course most of us watch the screen sector’s output at home.
https://www.20k.org/episodes/subtitleson has both the 30-minute audio and a transcript
I’m a big fan of this podcast, which is often disability-adjacent. In its nine years, it's covered how artists shape sound to convey meaning, how manufacturers tune their devices to be friendly, and how Beethoven created great music when he couldn’t hear at all.
Not surprisingly, many fans work with sound. Taylor solicited listener-produced contributions; I enjoyed the sixteen he chose. The overall winner celebrates the sonic scrapbook a Canadian sound designer keeps of his blind son’s upbringing, and introduces generational delight to the stop announcements on the Montreal transit system.
Accessibility Issue: I couldn’t open the SquareSpace transcript window using my tab key (crucial for those of us who don’t use mice) so I hope this highlight link to the control opens the transcript—let know about trouble/solutions in the comments.
errands and a bit of exercise
Sep. 26th, 2025 06:32 pmredbirdFor reasons, I ran some errands today so Adrian and Cattitude could stay home.
The main goal was to take a bathrobe to the Zipper Hospital, and ask them to replace the damaged zipper. So I did that, and was surprised by the sign saying they took cash and checks. Cash only would have surprised me less; in practice, I doubt they're being given many checks these days. They want payment in advance, but I had enough cash to cover it, so I didn't need to ask them for the location of the nearest ATM.
I then went to LA Burdick's, for a cup of hot chocolate, and a bag of chocolate-covered orange and lemon peel. The hot chocolate was good, but I spilled some on myself when I opened the takeout cup. So, I drank the hot chocolate, carefully; went to Trader Joe's; and then took the trolley home.
The trip wasn't a huge amount of walking, but it's the most I've done in the last couple of weeks. I did a little PT this afternoon as well; I've been keeping up with that pretty well.
The main goal was to take a bathrobe to the Zipper Hospital, and ask them to replace the damaged zipper. So I did that, and was surprised by the sign saying they took cash and checks. Cash only would have surprised me less; in practice, I doubt they're being given many checks these days. They want payment in advance, but I had enough cash to cover it, so I didn't need to ask them for the location of the nearest ATM.
I then went to LA Burdick's, for a cup of hot chocolate, and a bag of chocolate-covered orange and lemon peel. The hot chocolate was good, but I spilled some on myself when I opened the takeout cup. So, I drank the hot chocolate, carefully; went to Trader Joe's; and then took the trolley home.
The trip wasn't a huge amount of walking, but it's the most I've done in the last couple of weeks. I did a little PT this afternoon as well; I've been keeping up with that pretty well.