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adrian_turtle) wrote2025-11-12 10:07 am
adrian_turtle) wrote2025-11-12 10:07 ampolitical communication
The question before the committee was about when local* public schools should close: only on federal holidays, or also on Yom Kippur, Lunar New Year, Eid, and Good Friday. I think the specific person who said this is less important than the political context that inspired it.
Observing only federal holidays “would eliminate the hypothetical arguments over who is or who is not observing holidays, as well as opportunities for favoritism, virtue-signaling and misperceptions and accusations over diversity, equity and inclusion,”
I should not** get tangled up in logic but I am provoked beyond bearing.
If everyone gets the day off for YK, that AVOIDS the hypothetical arguments about who is or who is not observing the holiday. If some students are trying to be excused from classes on the day of Yom Kippur, with their parents writing notes, and trying to convince their teachers that it's important and no they can't attend class online either, and the school has to decide on a case-by-case basis whether to allow it or whether to enforce the Very Important Rules against truancy? This is how you avoid any hint of favoritism. This is how you avoid arguments about synagogues scheduling short little children's services for kids under 7 and whether it's worth missing school for something that lasts less than an hour. Or to remove the Jewish context, some Christians take Good Friday off and others (perhaps their teachers) say "It's only Good Friday, what's the big deal?"
The core problem is very sad and not logical.
The arguments are only hypothetical, yet already chilling.
The school should be careful to avoid equity or inclusion, lest they get in trouble.
Maybe I should say it's scary, more than sad.
*Nearby Boston suburb. To a casual glance, it's much whiter than most of the Boston area, but >25% of the population is Jewish.
**I have been known to garble my own logic when speaking to a hostile audience under time pressure. Or even when speaking to people who love me, are are willing to wait patiently while I backtrack a couple of times.
Observing only federal holidays “would eliminate the hypothetical arguments over who is or who is not observing holidays, as well as opportunities for favoritism, virtue-signaling and misperceptions and accusations over diversity, equity and inclusion,”
I should not** get tangled up in logic but I am provoked beyond bearing.
If everyone gets the day off for YK, that AVOIDS the hypothetical arguments about who is or who is not observing the holiday. If some students are trying to be excused from classes on the day of Yom Kippur, with their parents writing notes, and trying to convince their teachers that it's important and no they can't attend class online either, and the school has to decide on a case-by-case basis whether to allow it or whether to enforce the Very Important Rules against truancy? This is how you avoid any hint of favoritism. This is how you avoid arguments about synagogues scheduling short little children's services for kids under 7 and whether it's worth missing school for something that lasts less than an hour. Or to remove the Jewish context, some Christians take Good Friday off and others (perhaps their teachers) say "It's only Good Friday, what's the big deal?"
The core problem is very sad and not logical.
The arguments are only hypothetical, yet already chilling.
The school should be careful to avoid equity or inclusion, lest they get in trouble.
Maybe I should say it's scary, more than sad.
*Nearby Boston suburb. To a casual glance, it's much whiter than most of the Boston area, but >25% of the population is Jewish.
**I have been known to garble my own logic when speaking to a hostile audience under time pressure. Or even when speaking to people who love me, are are willing to wait patiently while I backtrack a couple of times.
conuly (conuly) wrote2025-11-12 11:45 pm
conuly) wrote2025-11-12 11:45 pmWhat is this crap!?
Democrats rebel after 8 senators cut a deal to end the shutdown without ACA funds
Bunch of weak-willed cowards.
Bunch of weak-willed cowards.
conuly (conuly) wrote2025-11-11 04:30 pm
conuly) wrote2025-11-11 04:30 pmToday is my grandmother's birthday
She was inordinately pleased to have been born on the anniversary of the Armistice, not that it kept her country from being invaded again when she was a young woman.
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( Read more... )
( Read more... )
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Entry tags:
Recent Reading: Flight of the Fallen
It’s been a bit! Timing conspired to prevent me from reviewing my last audiobook (Katherine Addison’s The Grief of Stones), but I’m here with the conclusion of the Magebike Courier duology by Hana Lee, Flight of the Fallen.
On the whole, I think if you liked the first book, you’ll like the second. It’s more of the same, which is no complaint from me. Lee digs only slightly more into the worldbuilding of the Wastes, but as with the first book, it’s clear that’s not where Lee’s strengths or interests lie, and so she doesn’t overreach herself there, which I think is best.
The main trio—Jin, Yi-Nereen, and Kadrin—continue to be fun and engaging characters, although Jin’s self-pitying act that began at the end of book 1 grows a little tiresome, even if it is understandable. (Fortunately, she gets over it and her best traits--her courage, her determination to keep trying, her capacity to love--win resoundingly in the end.) Making a surprisingly delightful reappearance is Sou-zelle, who actually threatens to usurp our lovers as the most interesting protagonist for the first third of the book. Book 1 did a good job of making Sou-zelle a more dynamic character than merely Yi-Nereen’s jilted fiancé, and book 2 continues to give him more depth.
( Read more... )On the whole, I think if you liked the first book, you’ll like the second. It’s more of the same, which is no complaint from me. Lee digs only slightly more into the worldbuilding of the Wastes, but as with the first book, it’s clear that’s not where Lee’s strengths or interests lie, and so she doesn’t overreach herself there, which I think is best.
The main trio—Jin, Yi-Nereen, and Kadrin—continue to be fun and engaging characters, although Jin’s self-pitying act that began at the end of book 1 grows a little tiresome, even if it is understandable. (Fortunately, she gets over it and her best traits--her courage, her determination to keep trying, her capacity to love--win resoundingly in the end.) Making a surprisingly delightful reappearance is Sou-zelle, who actually threatens to usurp our lovers as the most interesting protagonist for the first third of the book. Book 1 did a good job of making Sou-zelle a more dynamic character than merely Yi-Nereen’s jilted fiancé, and book 2 continues to give him more depth.
rydra_wong (rydra_wong) wrote2025-11-11 07:00 pm
rydra_wong) wrote2025-11-11 07:00 pmEntry tags:
"This fight is levelling you up before our eyes"
For anyone who's Dark Souls-curious and has a spare 30 mins, this is the best illustration I've seen of the process of figuring out a boss fight, and how you can go from dying in the first couple of seconds of a fight to methodical execution of it (and why it's so incredibly satisfying when you do):
For context, this is the Stray Demon, an optional side boss who's a very beefed-up version (now with added magic, as well as vastly increased damage and HP!) of the Asylum Demon from the tutorial.
I have a theory that the Asylum Demon is so pear-shaped partly in order to encourage the novice player to think of getting behind him and stabbing him in the arse, thus learning a key component of DS1 strategy (positioning yourself where it's hardest for them to hit you, which frequently means getting behind them or in their crotch).
For context, this is the Stray Demon, an optional side boss who's a very beefed-up version (now with added magic, as well as vastly increased damage and HP!) of the Asylum Demon from the tutorial.
I have a theory that the Asylum Demon is so pear-shaped partly in order to encourage the novice player to think of getting behind him and stabbing him in the arse, thus learning a key component of DS1 strategy (positioning yourself where it's hardest for them to hit you, which frequently means getting behind them or in their crotch).
conuly (conuly) wrote2025-11-09 11:55 am
conuly) wrote2025-11-09 11:55 amBrr! Suddenly got cold!
My pipe fix needs retooling. I'm not thrilled, but also not surprised. I need to start putting aside cash every week to get it repaired properly, but for now I'll buy more plumber's putty.
In other news, I have to do all of my laundry - boo! - and my new glasses are working nicely now that I'm used to them. I'm in the stage of owning glasses where I vow I'll be super careful not to let gunk build up between the frames and the lenses. We'll see how long that lasts! Wish me luck!
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( Read more... )
In other news, I have to do all of my laundry - boo! - and my new glasses are working nicely now that I'm used to them. I'm in the stage of owning glasses where I vow I'll be super careful not to let gunk build up between the frames and the lenses. We'll see how long that lasts! Wish me luck!
( Read more... )
conuly (conuly) wrote2025-11-10 12:09 pm
conuly) wrote2025-11-10 12:09 pmFelix Crow by Kay Ryan
Crow school
is basic and
short as a rule—
just the rudiments
of quid pro crow
for most students.
Then each lives out
his unenlightened
span, adding his
bit of blight
to the collected
history of pushing out
the sweeter species;
briefly swaggering the
swagger of his
aggravating ancestors
down my street.
And every time
I like him
when we meet.
****
Link
is basic and
short as a rule—
just the rudiments
of quid pro crow
for most students.
Then each lives out
his unenlightened
span, adding his
bit of blight
to the collected
history of pushing out
the sweeter species;
briefly swaggering the
swagger of his
aggravating ancestors
down my street.
And every time
I like him
when we meet.
Link
conuly (conuly) wrote2025-11-08 03:36 pm
conuly) wrote2025-11-08 03:36 pmWell, I like them well enough
Except I think that my pupil distance was 56 instead of 55, and also the bridge seems a bit flimsy. That, I don't like, but it may be my amorphous anxiety talking.
In other news, Moonpie has completely scratched and licked up her nipples and now they're bleeding and infected, and apparently the vet prefers to do a blood test at this age, but as the blood test is $400 we declined. (E asked if I thought they judged us for that, lol, sweetie, I always think everybody judges me for everything, but that's not a rational mindset, so no, upon reflection I don't think that. We're hardly the only family to make petcare decisions based on affordability, and even if they do judge us, great, they can pay for this bloodwork themselves.) Also, NYC now mandates a new vaccine for cats and dogs. They can mandate what they like, but they can't make people follow that law. However, after the vet explained that this disease spreads pretty easily and now is spreading to humans, in whom it can cause kidney and/or liver failure, I decided, reluctantly, to make vaxxing the cats a priority. Which means full vet appointments for each one and new rabies shots as well. It's not going to be a quick process, is what I'm saying. (And we still need to replace those water heaters before they break!)
******************************
( Read more... )
In other news, Moonpie has completely scratched and licked up her nipples and now they're bleeding and infected, and apparently the vet prefers to do a blood test at this age, but as the blood test is $400 we declined. (E asked if I thought they judged us for that, lol, sweetie, I always think everybody judges me for everything, but that's not a rational mindset, so no, upon reflection I don't think that. We're hardly the only family to make petcare decisions based on affordability, and even if they do judge us, great, they can pay for this bloodwork themselves.) Also, NYC now mandates a new vaccine for cats and dogs. They can mandate what they like, but they can't make people follow that law. However, after the vet explained that this disease spreads pretty easily and now is spreading to humans, in whom it can cause kidney and/or liver failure, I decided, reluctantly, to make vaxxing the cats a priority. Which means full vet appointments for each one and new rabies shots as well. It's not going to be a quick process, is what I'm saying. (And we still need to replace those water heaters before they break!)
( Read more... )
rydra_wong (rydra_wong) wrote2025-11-08 11:33 am
rydra_wong) wrote2025-11-08 11:33 amPSA which I keep forgetting to post
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/oct/01/online-platform-independent-bookshops-ebooks-uk
Bookshop.org is now selling ebooks in the UK as well, with profits (as with paper books sold through them) going to indie bookshops; you can either pick a specific shop you love to benefit (in my case, Juno Books), or have the money go into a collective pool.
Bookshop.org is now selling ebooks in the UK as well, with profits (as with paper books sold through them) going to indie bookshops; you can either pick a specific shop you love to benefit (in my case, Juno Books), or have the money go into a collective pool.
twistedchick (twistedchick) wrote2025-11-07 02:36 pm
twistedchick) wrote2025-11-07 02:36 pmvery odd
Yesterday I was coming home from Laurel along Rt. 29 -- what you need to know is that I was moving toward the southwest -- and the sky was very clear but looked ... odd.
When I looked up at it, I could see five white slashes in the sky, what looked like contrails from jets -- but they didn't budge, and there were no planes on the front of them to make the slashes longer. The slashes curved downward, not what you expect with an airplane trail. The longest one was closer to me, and they got smaller moving away.
All perfectly parallel, all curving downward. All unmoving. They looked like claw marks on the sky from an enormous bear.
Those were on the left. On the right, a regular contrail indicated a plane heading toward one of the local airports, probably Dulles. I could see that trail growing longer, while the others didn't move.
After I got home, I checked the 'net to see if something up above the atmosphere had broken, like a satellite, and was falling down, but didn't find anything.
It was still so weird.
And this was on my mother's birthday. She would have been 111 this year if she were still alive. I miss her every day, though as I get older I get a longer view of her life, seeing how one thing and another influenced her, and how she managed.
But still. Bear claws.
When I looked up at it, I could see five white slashes in the sky, what looked like contrails from jets -- but they didn't budge, and there were no planes on the front of them to make the slashes longer. The slashes curved downward, not what you expect with an airplane trail. The longest one was closer to me, and they got smaller moving away.
All perfectly parallel, all curving downward. All unmoving. They looked like claw marks on the sky from an enormous bear.
Those were on the left. On the right, a regular contrail indicated a plane heading toward one of the local airports, probably Dulles. I could see that trail growing longer, while the others didn't move.
After I got home, I checked the 'net to see if something up above the atmosphere had broken, like a satellite, and was falling down, but didn't find anything.
It was still so weird.
And this was on my mother's birthday. She would have been 111 this year if she were still alive. I miss her every day, though as I get older I get a longer view of her life, seeing how one thing and another influenced her, and how she managed.
But still. Bear claws.
twistedchick (twistedchick) wrote2025-11-07 02:29 pm
twistedchick) wrote2025-11-07 02:29 pmLate but still trying.
This is a prayer for Samhain; this is a prayer for Resistance.
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
The bones beneath the Earth cry out, and, more than that, the colonizers fear that they will. The hungry crowd the dumb supper table and, more than that, the greedy fear that they will. The chains of slaves clank in the graveyard and, more than that, the slavers fear that they will.
This is the cry that rends the veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
The ancestors throb in our blood and the merchants of Lethe try to distract. Our raped grandmothers drag ragged nails across their cheeks and the armies wish that they wouldn’t. Under the earth, dead children scream for their fathers and Wall Street distracts us with sex and beer.
This is a prayer for Samhain; this is a prayer for Resistance.
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
Owls hoot in the darkness and the guilty fear that wisdom. Bats flap against a dark Moon sky and the predators quiver in fear. The innocent of Salem jerk at the end of the rope and the church collects the money.
This is a prayer for Samhain; this is a prayer for Resistance.
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
Samhain is how our ancestors paid for the right to be part of the cycle. Samhain is how they remembered the mighty dead, the miscarried child, the beloved ancestors. Samhain is how they built a bridge to the Isle of Apples, how they ate both the flower and the seed, how they saw a Spring at the end of Winter. May we have their courage.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
This is a prayer for Samhain; this is a prayer for Resistance.
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
The cells of our bodies are a prayer for Resistance.
This is a prayer for Samhain; this is a prayer for Resistance.
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
May it be so for you.
-- by Hecate Demeter
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
The bones beneath the Earth cry out, and, more than that, the colonizers fear that they will. The hungry crowd the dumb supper table and, more than that, the greedy fear that they will. The chains of slaves clank in the graveyard and, more than that, the slavers fear that they will.
This is the cry that rends the veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
The ancestors throb in our blood and the merchants of Lethe try to distract. Our raped grandmothers drag ragged nails across their cheeks and the armies wish that they wouldn’t. Under the earth, dead children scream for their fathers and Wall Street distracts us with sex and beer.
This is a prayer for Samhain; this is a prayer for Resistance.
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
Owls hoot in the darkness and the guilty fear that wisdom. Bats flap against a dark Moon sky and the predators quiver in fear. The innocent of Salem jerk at the end of the rope and the church collects the money.
This is a prayer for Samhain; this is a prayer for Resistance.
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
Samhain is how our ancestors paid for the right to be part of the cycle. Samhain is how they remembered the mighty dead, the miscarried child, the beloved ancestors. Samhain is how they built a bridge to the Isle of Apples, how they ate both the flower and the seed, how they saw a Spring at the end of Winter. May we have their courage.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
This is a prayer for Samhain; this is a prayer for Resistance.
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
The cells of our bodies are a prayer for Resistance.
This is a prayer for Samhain; this is a prayer for Resistance.
This is the cry that rends the Veils; this is a prayer for Resistance.
Samhain is a dark festival, the feast of the dead, a crone’s picnic. Samhain is a Sabbat of Resistance.
May it be so for you.
-- by Hecate Demeter
conuly (conuly) wrote2025-11-07 12:20 am
conuly) wrote2025-11-07 12:20 amWell, I've picked out a new set of frames
It was a penny more than the old ones, so there's that. (But I paid for super expedited shipping, so actually it's like $40 more.)
They're green. I'm not so sure about this, but there will be NO MORE TAKE-BACKS. I triple checked that they weren't safety glasses with the things on the side, which would've been great if I was in a field where I needed those but, as it is, was unwearable, and they're the exact same measurement as my old glasses, I checked that as well.
They're green. I'm not so sure about this, but there will be NO MORE TAKE-BACKS. I triple checked that they weren't safety glasses with the things on the side, which would've been great if I was in a field where I needed those but, as it is, was unwearable, and they're the exact same measurement as my old glasses, I checked that as well.
conuly (conuly) wrote2025-11-06 10:07 am
conuly) wrote2025-11-06 10:07 amI used the election to read In Other Lands
I liked it, but that was because I liked laughing at how stupidly oblivious the protagonist was to his not-rival's extraordinarily obvious crush on him. And also because I like most things I read.
But then, here I was, 20 minutes from the finish line, our two dudes are about to finally resolve all their deep-seated personal issues that have kept them apart - and my coworkers start a loud conversation right next to me and they will not shut up. I did, eventually, have to ask them to please stop for half an hour so I could finish my book.
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( Read more... )
But then, here I was, 20 minutes from the finish line, our two dudes are about to finally resolve all their deep-seated personal issues that have kept them apart - and my coworkers start a loud conversation right next to me and they will not shut up. I did, eventually, have to ask them to please stop for half an hour so I could finish my book.
( Read more... )
radiantfracture (radiantfracture) wrote2025-11-06 08:37 pm
radiantfracture) wrote2025-11-06 08:37 pmA query I put fruitlessly into the ravenous machines that once gave answers
Who was it who said something like -- in a way all books are games, whether they are actual gamebooks or not, because all readers engage with a novel (I feel like they said novel?) with some level of imaginary wiggle room, constantly envisioning alternatives?
Queer reading is one form of this, but any reading contains some aspect of this push-pull. I think this person said that this is in fact an inevitable part of reading a story, this alternate acceptance and refusal, this shimmering of possibility, such that (famously) you can read a story over and over again and still always hope at a particular point that a character will make a different decision?
(I may have asked this before, because it is an idea that intermittently preoccupies me.)
(Possibly several times, because it might be in my notes from 2023, but who can find those?)
(Now I feel paranoid that I never stop asking this question)
(Also I got double vaccinated today and I am a teeny bit feverish)
§rf§
Queer reading is one form of this, but any reading contains some aspect of this push-pull. I think this person said that this is in fact an inevitable part of reading a story, this alternate acceptance and refusal, this shimmering of possibility, such that (famously) you can read a story over and over again and still always hope at a particular point that a character will make a different decision?
(I may have asked this before, because it is an idea that intermittently preoccupies me.)
(Possibly several times, because it might be in my notes from 2023, but who can find those?)
(Now I feel paranoid that I never stop asking this question)
(Also I got double vaccinated today and I am a teeny bit feverish)
§rf§
twistedchick (twistedchick) wrote2025-11-06 04:15 pm
twistedchick) wrote2025-11-06 04:15 pmway better than expected
The last time I went to have my teeth cleaned, I had a terrible time. The hygienist wasn't available, so the main dentist in the practice did it and she was uptight and not willing to give me a break when I needed one -- at least not long enough for me to put in earplugs before she cranked up the drill mechanism (with a polisher on it) with that sound that goes through my head like someone shoving a sword into it and wiggling the sword. I drove home afterward with a splitting headache that lasted for hours.
Today, however, was unexpectedly better. I figured that I needed to account for all the terrible things on my chart from last time, so I told the hygienist and the assistant that I am a musician and have very sensitive ears -- and I showed them the enormous industrial-strength earplugs that I acquired when I worked in a factory decades ago. (I've worn them at rock concerts; they work very well.). So I put in the plugs, and things went well. I saw the main dentist's younger sister, also a dentist, who was way more laid back and friendly, who said my gums were "fabulous" (nobody's ever said that before) and told me to keep doing whatever I'm doing.
And afterward, because the assistant and hygienist were still asking if I was OK, I sang the old song "Peace of the river" for them, and now they're all sure I should have been on stage somewhere, even though I just told them that I used to sing for weddings. That's okay. If someone asks me to sing for a wedding these days, I'll go for something in a lower range than Barbra Streisand's 'Evergreen', which was what I sang at the last wedding I did, some years ago.
Anyway, I'm very relieved that I'm past that and it went so well, and now I don't have to go back till next May. Yay!
Today, however, was unexpectedly better. I figured that I needed to account for all the terrible things on my chart from last time, so I told the hygienist and the assistant that I am a musician and have very sensitive ears -- and I showed them the enormous industrial-strength earplugs that I acquired when I worked in a factory decades ago. (I've worn them at rock concerts; they work very well.). So I put in the plugs, and things went well. I saw the main dentist's younger sister, also a dentist, who was way more laid back and friendly, who said my gums were "fabulous" (nobody's ever said that before) and told me to keep doing whatever I'm doing.
And afterward, because the assistant and hygienist were still asking if I was OK, I sang the old song "Peace of the river" for them, and now they're all sure I should have been on stage somewhere, even though I just told them that I used to sing for weddings. That's okay. If someone asks me to sing for a wedding these days, I'll go for something in a lower range than Barbra Streisand's 'Evergreen', which was what I sang at the last wedding I did, some years ago.
Anyway, I'm very relieved that I'm past that and it went so well, and now I don't have to go back till next May. Yay!