Friday, April 24, 2026

What Light Through Yonder Pages Breaks?

 It's all my associates* and I can talk about, the Coconut Dr Pepper.  For several weeks, a recipe for a Dr Pepper margarita has come across my Instagram feed...  I'm not a drinker, but adding that coconut cream kick does sound tasty.

The book I'm reading about the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary  made a very interesting point several pages ago.  We, of course, take dictionaries for granted, but people lived without them for centuries.  Shakespeare did not have a dictionary.  How did he know he was using, or spelling, the correct words?  That little factoid made my day.

"How do I even spell 'honorificabilitunitatibus'?  I do this all the time --- write myself into a corner...  Hey!  I think I just turned a phrase there!"



*I do so have associates.

Thursday, April 23, 2026

Now It's a Party

Y'all --- it's back!

I cannot express to you how happy this makes me.  I found it at Publix, only to find out that Amazon has it for half the price.  I ordered two (their limit.)

The second chair is now out of the back porch.  I caught my right hand between it and a door jamb --- straight across all four knuckles.  It will be a prison-ink-looking bruise.

This is my little plant hanger with my plastic plants.

Those doors stopped working all of a sudden one day.  They won't open from the porch side, but they will open from the deck side.  I kept the cat tower there as a hopeful deterrent.  You can see cat toys hanging down from the door lever.

I'm working on putting string lights around the kitchen counter and peninsula.*  (No island here.)  They displease me as they are.  They took two types of hangers, because the counter is shallow along one stretch.  If I get them where I like them, I'll share.


*The perfect term, via Twinnie.

It's So Not Me


"Busy" is quite possibly my least-used gear.  Yet today I re-mortared some loose bricks on the front porch, installed a new showerhead (which I think is going to disappoint me), put together and hung a plant bar, and transplanted some baby succulents.

My plan is to turn the glassed-in back porch into a calm, safe space for myself.  I've moved two chairs and the cat tower out already, but can't do anything with the treadmill by myself.  I'm going to move my desk in there, and hopefully find a cute little chair for relaxing/reading.  The plant hanger is above the door there, with artificial plants for the time being.

More coming.

Monday, April 20, 2026

Which Way?

Each killer in the Serial Killer Exhibition had, their picture, and banners about the crimes and the victims.  Like, for example:

Was he (it was a "he") an ogre who killed many people, or did he kill both ogres and others?  This is what you think about when there are SO many people around you and they WON'T MOVE ALONG.

It's been a very pretty day here today.  Unfortunately, I have a 28-out-of-10 eye headache that has not eased up at all.  One thing that I had wanted to do today was put some hanging planters up in the back porch, but pounding nails was just not going to happen today.

Sunday

So, the serial killer exhibition was...um, fun?  Awesome?  Enjoyable?  It's hard to juxtapose "serial killer" with "great."  It was fascinating.  Sadly, there were a lot of children there.  Some of the exhibits had very realistic mannequins and prosthetics, and there were photographs throughout, and it was obvious that they were frightened, if not traumatized.

For the first time in a long, long time, I wished I were lecturing tomorrow.  Deviance, personality, family dynamics, the judicial system --- I talked about killers a lot as it was;  now I have fresh information.


Last night, I picked up a box of things to take to Hannah, to put it in the car.  I tweaked my back something fierce.  Luckily, I've never had any issues with my back, and I know this is nothing compared to what lots of people deal with.  (Perhaps even someone reading this. . .)  I've been "treating" it with topical CBD oil and my heated massager.


Saturday, April 18, 2026

News of Individuals

If you need something, ask a knitter.  I got more items for Thursday's list:

Any tire: Goodyear.

Any utility tape: Duct tape.

Any copying or copy: Xeroxing or a Xerox.

Stuff like this pops into my mind occasionally.  I have no idea why.  My infatuation with words, maybe?

I'm going to Atlanta tomorrow, so that Hannah and I can go to

'Cause that's just who we are.  There is, apparently, merchandise available, which amuses us.  Don't get me wrong --- I'm almost certain we'll buy some things, but the concept is still funny.

Hannah wanted me to bring a box of things to her, and dang if I didn't tweak my back picking the box up and putting it in the car.  I've never had even a hint of back problems, so hopefully this will resolve quickly.




Friday, April 17, 2026

Zip Ode

The Zip Ode thing. I've been meaning to craft my own.  Here goes.

When your code



Has two, count them, two, zeroes,



Your poem has weird empty spaces.


Thursday, April 16, 2026

Can You Add to the List?

A friend of mine and I somehow wound up talking about products that are called by their "not technically true" names.  We came up with:

Any tissues: Kleenex 

Any cotton swabs: Q-Tips

Any clear tape: Scotch tape

Any plastic wrap: Saran Wrap

Any window cleaner: Windex

Any adhesive bandages: Band-aids

Any petroleum jelly: Vaseline




Wednesday, April 15, 2026

A Perk of Being an Only Child

Do y'all remember these?

Growing up, my friends with siblings hated them, because they'd have to break them in half to share.  If you did get a whole one to yourself, you had to eat it quickly or it would melt.  I have a clear, vivid memory of my friends' little brother with orange streaks down his arms and all over his hands.  When the Popsicle Man comes around, get a Nutty Buddy or a Rocket Pop;  much harder to halve.  (Even an ice cream sandwich can be split in two.)

Tuesday, April 14, 2026

Trial

About five minutes of my day today was spent making this.

Only it didn't come out at all bread-like.  It has the consistency and flavor of really, really good cheese grits.  (I added cheese instead of herbs or other flavorings.)  That may have something to do with my baking it in the air fryer instead of the oven.  Not that I'm complaining --- what I have is delicious.

This is happening here as I post;  I thought about joining the protests against the appearance, but Vance simply isn't worth my time.  Besides, all those empty seats say enough.

What Light Through Yonder Pages Breaks?

 It's all my associates* and I can talk about, the Coconut Dr Pepper.  For several weeks, a recipe for a Dr Pepper margarita has come ac...