government shutdown
Oct. 1st, 2025 08:12 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gingicat posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
thisfinecrewWell, the government shutdown happened. What resources are out there for those dependent on the services that just disappeared?
gingicat posting in thisfinecrew
New month, but the read books are all from last month
Oct. 1st, 2025 02:49 pmanehanRecently read
Currently reading
- Yatsuki Wakatsu, The Other World’s Books Depend on the Bean Counter, Vol. 2: Church Management Support Plan
The first volume managed to be entertaining, mostly because the relationship dynamic between the MC and the ML was hilarious. Turns out that couldn't carry the series past the first volume. The first volume was bad in an addictive way; this one is just bad. Alas. - Cat Sebastian, Hither, Page (Page & Sommers #1)
Some years ago I tried to read Cat Sebastian's It Takes Two to Tumble and bounced off of it hard enough that I never tried to read anything else by her. Until now. Lately, I've been into historical mystery novels, especially queer historical mystery novels, so I've had my eye on this for a while now. It didn't end up being quite as historical as I thought it would be -- for some reason I thought it'd be post-WWI rather than post-WWII -- but I loved it so much that I think I might be a Cat Sebastian fan now. - Cat Sebastian, The Missing Page (Page & Sommers #2)
That title is so clever it makes me mad.
Currently reading
- Annick Trent, The Oak and the Ash (The Old Bridge Inn #3)
Haven't read the previous volumes of this series, but it's stand-alone enough to not matter. Historical M/M romance between a surgeon with radical political ideas and a valet with an interest in meteorology. I'm enjoying this one a lot!
The Bewitching & Mexican Gothic, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Oct. 1st, 2025 06:44 amrachelmanija
Three timelines intertwine, connected by witches and women. A grad student in Massachusetts in the 1990s, whose grandmother had a run-in with a witch in the early 1900s in Mexico, researches the mysterious disappearance of a promising woman horror writer in the 1930s.
It's a very nicely constructed, gripping, enjoyable novel of good and evil magic, and women's persistence in the face of what seem to be impossible odds.
Content notes: Cat death.
What it says on the tin: a very gothic-y gothic, set in Mexico. Noemi is a bit of a shallow, selfish debutante in 1950s Mexico. But when she realizes that her cousin who married a wealthy older man may be in trouble in their lavish home in rural Mexico, Noemi sets out to rescue her. She promptly encounters every gothic trope ever, plus a really fun twist on the haunted house/ghost story.
It turns out that being a mean girl debutante used to getting her own way is exactly what's needed to survive this story. I had no end of fun with Noemi bluntly calling out the rule about no talking at dinner, demanding to know exactly what medical treatment her cousin was getting, and generally running roughshod over the creepy atmosphere. A very enjoyable book that I read in a single sitting.
(no subject)
Sep. 29th, 2025 09:52 amconulyFirst, is my cat not the most beautiful cat you've seen in the past few minutes?
( Cut for size )
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( Cut for size )
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NaCraMaMo starts Octobere 1 (in TWO days!)
Sep. 29th, 2025 10:57 amladythmpr posting in everykindofcraftHi all!
October will be here in 2 DAYS! Since 2008, October for me has been National Craft Making Month, or NaCraMaMo for short. NaCraMaMo started as a community on LJ, and I started a newnacramamo community on DreamWidth when I moved here in 2017.
In short, during National Craft Making Month in October, you work on a craft every day for a month and post pictures of your work daily innacramamo. nacramamo is very free-form; you can work on the same project every day or work on different projects every day. Crafting is also very loosely defined; it's basically anything that you do with your hands that results in a tangible object. For example, I count baking as crafting, but I don't count making dinner as crafting (but you might!)
A lot of people usenacramamo as a jumpstart for Halloween projects and Winter holiday gift making.
I'd love to have you join me, giving it your best shot.
October will be here in 2 DAYS! Since 2008, October for me has been National Craft Making Month, or NaCraMaMo for short. NaCraMaMo started as a community on LJ, and I started a new
nacramamo community on DreamWidth when I moved here in 2017.In short, during National Craft Making Month in October, you work on a craft every day for a month and post pictures of your work daily in
nacramamo. nacramamo is very free-form; you can work on the same project every day or work on different projects every day. Crafting is also very loosely defined; it's basically anything that you do with your hands that results in a tangible object. For example, I count baking as crafting, but I don't count making dinner as crafting (but you might!)A lot of people use
nacramamo as a jumpstart for Halloween projects and Winter holiday gift making.I'd love to have you join me, giving it your best shot.
Weird dream channel, September 2025
Sep. 28th, 2025 01:26 pmbrithistorianI've had a couple of weird dreams over the last two nights. I'm recording them more for my own reference than anything else, but if you decide to read them, I hope you enjoy them. In case you are (as I am) someone who doesn't enjoy reading other people's dreams, I'm putting them behind cuts.
To help distinguish states: IRL = "in real life" (obviously), ITD = "in the dream."
Night of 26-27 September:
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Night of 27-28 September:
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So, I thought I was getting a palmsized scrubbie brush with a soap dispenser
Sep. 26th, 2025 08:48 pmconulybut it was a set of two regular palmsized scrubbie brushes for dishes. Which was disappointing, but E made the amazing discovery that they are really fun to smash together, bristle to bristle, so that's all right.
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Wire Trees, Metal Birds and Glitzy Pendants
Sep. 27th, 2025 02:54 pmyourlibrarian posting in everykindofcraft
The wire tree over the shell pendant was a great look, in part because it cut down the iridescence of the backing. I decided to go with some soft pale blue stone, and then copper birds to match the wire tree. I also added in some faceted fire polish coins to echo the light-catching of the pendant. ( Read more... )
Yuletide Nominations 2025
Sep. 25th, 2025 08:51 pmneotomaVertigo (1958)
John "Scottie" Ferguson
Midge Wood
Judy Barton
Madeleine Elster
Yours Truly Johnny Dollar (Yours Truly Johnny Dollar (Radio))
Johnny Dollar
Doctor Faustus - Christopher Marlowe
Mephistophilis (Doctor Faustus - Marlowe)
Lucifer (Doctor Faustus - Marlowe)
Good Angel (Doctor Faustus - Marlowe)
Evil Angel (Doctor Faustus - Marlowe)
An American in Paris (1951)
Jerry Mulligan
Adam Cook (An American in Paris)
Henri Baurel
Milo Roberts
Mirabile - Janet Kagan
Annie Jason Masmajean
Leonov Bellmaker Denness
John "Scottie" Ferguson
Midge Wood
Judy Barton
Madeleine Elster
Yours Truly Johnny Dollar (Yours Truly Johnny Dollar (Radio))
Johnny Dollar
Doctor Faustus - Christopher Marlowe
Mephistophilis (Doctor Faustus - Marlowe)
Lucifer (Doctor Faustus - Marlowe)
Good Angel (Doctor Faustus - Marlowe)
Evil Angel (Doctor Faustus - Marlowe)
An American in Paris (1951)
Jerry Mulligan
Adam Cook (An American in Paris)
Henri Baurel
Milo Roberts
Mirabile - Janet Kagan
Annie Jason Masmajean
Leonov Bellmaker Denness
Rogue Corn by Nikki Wallschlaeger
Sep. 25th, 2025 06:23 pmconulyMy fav event as harvest season approaches
is the rough seed that escaped the plots.
If there’s a cornfield adjacent to another bed
of vegetables, you can count on imperfection,
you can see stalks standing where they’re
not supposed to be, the winds have ideas,
seeds who choose wildness, here they are,
with red potatoes, alfalfa, peas, sunflowers,
they look pleased w/ themselves, outfoxing
clever farmers, making it to the unplanned
ground where nobody is around, recovering
where the amiable dirt will welcome them.
Seeds are so fun and determined,
there’s no concept of liberty, no need for it,
guaranteed if I were a seedling I’d abstain,
you know I would, I’d find a way to renounce
what’s expected of my common name,
gliding over the roads until a dream takes root
**************
Link
is the rough seed that escaped the plots.
If there’s a cornfield adjacent to another bed
of vegetables, you can count on imperfection,
you can see stalks standing where they’re
not supposed to be, the winds have ideas,
seeds who choose wildness, here they are,
with red potatoes, alfalfa, peas, sunflowers,
they look pleased w/ themselves, outfoxing
clever farmers, making it to the unplanned
ground where nobody is around, recovering
where the amiable dirt will welcome them.
Seeds are so fun and determined,
there’s no concept of liberty, no need for it,
guaranteed if I were a seedling I’d abstain,
you know I would, I’d find a way to renounce
what’s expected of my common name,
gliding over the roads until a dream takes root
Link
Dang! Academic smackdown!
Sep. 24th, 2025 09:25 pmbrithistorianI was reading the June 2025 American Historical Review tonight and came across Peter Lorge's review of A History of Traditional Chinese Military Science by Huang Pumin, Wei Hong, and Xiong Jianping, translatied by Fan Hao. It's one of the most brutal academic takedowns of a book that I've ever read. I'd like to share with you the first sentence from each paragraph, which manage to convey the sense of the whole thing, with my comments afterward in brackets.
- "The field of Chinese military history in the West has grown considerably in the last couple of decades but remains extremely small." [So this book should be useful.]
- "A History of Traditional Chinese Military Science is therefore valuable if only because there isn't much else." [My comment #1 was right, but just barely.]
- "The term 'military science' is particularly problematic. [Dang! We're not even out of the title and things are already "particularly problematic!"]
- "More problematically, the authors believe that Chinese military thought — or military science, in their terms — did not change after it was established in the pre-imperial period (before 221 BCE)." [It's never a good sign when any paragraph in a review begins with "more problematically."]
- "This brings us to a deep-rooted problem in this book's scholarship." [After two paragraphs of problems, we now come to "a deep-rooted problem"? Damn!]
- "Readers unfamiliar with Chinese history, let along Chinese military history, will find the discussions of history and warfare confusing." [In other words, if you know enough to understand this book, you know too much to learn anything from it.]
- "The translation itself appears to be generally competent, although the translator is not well-versed in the deeper meanings of either the technical military terms in Chinese or in English." [It looks like he's about to let the translator off the hook, but no.]
Jimmy Kimmel's return!
Sep. 24th, 2025 10:55 ambrithistorianA. and I just watched Jimmy Kimmel's comeback monologue from last night. It was great — I'm glad to see him back. I've got to say, though: After seeing his supercut of all the time's Trump said not to take Tylenol in his press conference with RFK Jr., I feel an uncontrollable urge to take Tylenol!
5 Calls Dot Org
Sep. 24th, 2025 08:47 amgingicat posting in thisfinecrewLearned about this from the weekly Indivisible email!
5 CALLS DOT ORG
Click on this tool (https://5calls.org/all/) to name and dial and/or email your federal representatives, simply following a script . As appropriate, express your gratitude and/or request increased action. Keep in mind that staffers log just one issue per call. Each one matters big time.
Massachusetts folks:
Interested in making a few key calls? Please call or write Governor Healey, urging her to act boldly, and/or tell Senators Warren and Markey to fight hard against giving Trump a blank check! https://5calls.org/issue/federal-budget-government-shutdown/
You needn't make speeches. One-line statements will make your communication count as much as - if not more than - a long explanation.
Template to contact Governor Healey, from Indivisible:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KSmFBTRj21bu-qsJAnTz4gJKk1EAnCRPSjBbRTiaXOQ/
5 CALLS DOT ORG
Click on this tool (https://5calls.org/all/) to name and dial and/or email your federal representatives, simply following a script . As appropriate, express your gratitude and/or request increased action. Keep in mind that staffers log just one issue per call. Each one matters big time.
Massachusetts folks:
Interested in making a few key calls? Please call or write Governor Healey, urging her to act boldly, and/or tell Senators Warren and Markey to fight hard against giving Trump a blank check! https://5calls.org/issue/federal-budget-government-shutdown/
You needn't make speeches. One-line statements will make your communication count as much as - if not more than - a long explanation.
Template to contact Governor Healey, from Indivisible:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KSmFBTRj21bu-qsJAnTz4gJKk1EAnCRPSjBbRTiaXOQ/
