🔺 [music]
Apr. 5th, 2026 07:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sidereaPolka-dotted extraterrestrials with prehensile toes and monster groove have come to save humankind with virtuoso looped microtonal rock in compound time signatures.
Look, based on that description, I wouldn't have given this the time of day myself either, but there's a reason these maniacs have become an absolute phenomenon.
Gentle readers, Angine de Poitrine.
Absolutely read the comments. As much of a treat as the band.
Like a lot of things that have arrived from space, their initial point of impact on this planet was Québec. Some clever person noticed that their track titles are phonetic spellings of Québécois slang (Joual).
Look, based on that description, I wouldn't have given this the time of day myself either, but there's a reason these maniacs have become an absolute phenomenon.
Gentle readers, Angine de Poitrine.
Absolutely read the comments. As much of a treat as the band.
Like a lot of things that have arrived from space, their initial point of impact on this planet was Québec. Some clever person noticed that their track titles are phonetic spellings of Québécois slang (Joual).
"nature's first green is gold, her hardest hue to hold" (robert frost)
Apr. 5th, 2026 06:54 pmstarandreaMe, deciding whether to bring back the phrase "yin sword" in a new story* with limited understanding of how references to "yin metal" were made in The Untamed: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
*(It's the last sentence of Walk the Night Roads. Basically my version of a twitter fic, where you tell what happens in the story instead of telling the story itself. Of course I don't know what happens in the story, so that makes it more entertaining. To me.)
Me, idly trying to retrace my research into mercury as the yin-est of metals and something that wealthy people actually used in Ancient China to absorb and stabilize "resentful energy" in tombs: ...
Me, instead discovering that the phrase "yin metal" is a thing in English because the "gold" in TCM's five elements probably meant "refined metal" in Ancient China: huh
(The five great sects are the five elements, right, and I absolutely cannot** remember that Jin Sect is earth and Nie sect is metal, because in Chinese "gold" is pronounced "jin." METAL, Star. Metal blades. Maybe that will help.)
**...What! I did not know "can not" is preferentially spelled "cannot" until TODAY. Editors have been correcting me for years; "it's cannot, Star" and I'm like "it's not, but okay" and every time I forget they fix it for me, which is very kind. But I genuinely thought they just liked "cannot" more than "can not" and now I find out that everyone does? Is this the result of reading too many Star Trek novels as a child where Spock's style of contraction-less speech is so emphasized? Why is "cannot" correct and "donot" isn't?
...Clearly I need to continue watching this show. Because of the yin iron, not the contractions. And apparently not because of my own story, where I do what I want.
♥ ( Episode 3 )
*(It's the last sentence of Walk the Night Roads. Basically my version of a twitter fic, where you tell what happens in the story instead of telling the story itself. Of course I don't know what happens in the story, so that makes it more entertaining. To me.)
Me, idly trying to retrace my research into mercury as the yin-est of metals and something that wealthy people actually used in Ancient China to absorb and stabilize "resentful energy" in tombs: ...
Me, instead discovering that the phrase "yin metal" is a thing in English because the "gold" in TCM's five elements probably meant "refined metal" in Ancient China: huh
(The five great sects are the five elements, right, and I absolutely cannot** remember that Jin Sect is earth and Nie sect is metal, because in Chinese "gold" is pronounced "jin." METAL, Star. Metal blades. Maybe that will help.)
**...What! I did not know "can not" is preferentially spelled "cannot" until TODAY. Editors have been correcting me for years; "it's cannot, Star" and I'm like "it's not, but okay" and every time I forget they fix it for me, which is very kind. But I genuinely thought they just liked "cannot" more than "can not" and now I find out that everyone does? Is this the result of reading too many Star Trek novels as a child where Spock's style of contraction-less speech is so emphasized? Why is "cannot" correct and "donot" isn't?
...Clearly I need to continue watching this show. Because of the yin iron, not the contractions. And apparently not because of my own story, where I do what I want.
♥ ( Episode 3 )
conulyNeighbors fretted that the garden was a security issue: “I am worried about normalizing the presence of many different people in front yards during potentially all hours of the day without any kind of restrictions put on access.”
Oh, the horrors, people in front yards!
This isn't quite as absurd as the time an entire LJ comm told me that they'd be "scared" if they got a piece of mail in their mailboxes that hadn't been postmarked (I suggested hand-delivering a late-sent birthday invitation to the home rather than risking it not arriving at the house until after the party date, apparently this was very frightening), but it's more absurd than the time a whole community of people joined in to tell somebody with a stalking history that rubber duckies showing up at her daughter's college dorm were something to be alarmed over rather than reassuring her that it was probably just her friends playing a prank. (The latter was my suggestion, and I was right. I really chewed them out over that one too, pointing out that they had regular monthly freakouts over "somebody is parked in front of my house and I'm scared" or "somebody turned up my driveway and then backed out and drove off and I'm scared" and yet, nothing bad ever happened to anybody!)
This sort of nonsense is what gets people shot in America. Well, that and access to guns, but people buy guns because they are quite irrationally scared of their neighbors. Your neighbors aren't gonna kill you in your own home! If anybody kills you, it'll be a family member or maybe yourself. The worst thing that will happen if your neighbors have a vegetable garden is that they'll dump a load of zucchini on your porch. Believe me, you'd rather they give it away to people who want it!
Oh, the horrors, people in front yards!
This isn't quite as absurd as the time an entire LJ comm told me that they'd be "scared" if they got a piece of mail in their mailboxes that hadn't been postmarked (I suggested hand-delivering a late-sent birthday invitation to the home rather than risking it not arriving at the house until after the party date, apparently this was very frightening), but it's more absurd than the time a whole community of people joined in to tell somebody with a stalking history that rubber duckies showing up at her daughter's college dorm were something to be alarmed over rather than reassuring her that it was probably just her friends playing a prank. (The latter was my suggestion, and I was right. I really chewed them out over that one too, pointing out that they had regular monthly freakouts over "somebody is parked in front of my house and I'm scared" or "somebody turned up my driveway and then backed out and drove off and I'm scared" and yet, nothing bad ever happened to anybody!)
This sort of nonsense is what gets people shot in America. Well, that and access to guns, but people buy guns because they are quite irrationally scared of their neighbors. Your neighbors aren't gonna kill you in your own home! If anybody kills you, it'll be a family member or maybe yourself. The worst thing that will happen if your neighbors have a vegetable garden is that they'll dump a load of zucchini on your porch. Believe me, you'd rather they give it away to people who want it!
Ain't nobody write me like you read me before
Apr. 5th, 2026 05:22 amsovayI freely admit that I ground my way through the protracted heteronormative anxieties of Strange Lady in Town (1955) for the continued presence of twenty-three-year-old Lois Smith as Spurs O'Brien, one of those mixed-up motherless tomboys who just needs her gender trouble sorted out by her father's remarriage to a strong feminine role model if you believe the screenplay and looks such a late nineteenth century baby dyke in her ranch jacket and jingling boots that you feel she's just waiting for motorcycle clubs to be invented. Her crush on a cavalry lieutenant is narratively doomed and might in any case have been envy. Put her in a ball gown, she's right back in trousers and string ties the next scene, heedless and gallant as any young grandee. I mean when Dana Andrews drags his heels on the sub-screwball romance through which the picture manifests its stresses over the place of professional women, Spurs does her best to run off with Greer Garson herself, all the way back to Boston. "I don't know, Doc, except—well, except I can't figure out any sort of life without you." What did the film think it was doing with her? I don't even know what it thought it was doing with the slap-kiss of its textual couple, but I took an awful screencap just because of the lingering way Spurs sees herself out of a room with Garson's Dr. Julia Garth in it. Once she gets over the rebound, she'll make some Eastern belle ring. "But what a woman!"
I love these dogs
Apr. 4th, 2026 04:03 pmstarandreaPictures!
♥ Whinnie, Queen
Reported Breed ID: Cairn Terrier
What I told people she was: Cairn Terrier
How I licensed her: Cairn Terrier
( Queen Whinnie )
♥ Mimi, Angel
Reported Breed ID: Cairn Terrier
DNA Breed ID: Chow Chow/Shetland Sheepdog/Shih Tzu
What I told people she was: Cairn/Pomeranian/Chihuahua
How I licensed her: Terrier Mix
( Angel Mimi )
♥ Daphne, Princess
Reported Breed ID: Cairn/Chihuahua
DNA Breed ID: TBD
What I tell people she is: Border Terrier
What other people tell me she is: Brussels Griffon
How I license her: Terrier Mix
( Princess Daphne )
♥ Whinnie, Queen
Reported Breed ID: Cairn Terrier
What I told people she was: Cairn Terrier
How I licensed her: Cairn Terrier
( Queen Whinnie )
♥ Mimi, Angel
Reported Breed ID: Cairn Terrier
DNA Breed ID: Chow Chow/Shetland Sheepdog/Shih Tzu
What I told people she was: Cairn/Pomeranian/Chihuahua
How I licensed her: Terrier Mix
( Angel Mimi )
♥ Daphne, Princess
Reported Breed ID: Cairn/Chihuahua
DNA Breed ID: TBD
What I tell people she is: Border Terrier
What other people tell me she is: Brussels Griffon
How I license her: Terrier Mix
( Princess Daphne )
I should find pictures of Whinnie and Mimi to illustrate
Apr. 4th, 2026 02:29 pmstarandreaI was wrong about the Embark Breed & Health DNA test. There is a place on their website that addresses the question, "Why did my sample fail?" which says the two most likely reasons are 1) insufficient DNA on the swab (this might be us, we'll know in a few weeks) and 2) contamination, usually with DNA from another pet via shared food or drink. Embark says if either of these is the case they'll know right away and they can send a free replacement kit by request. So that's nice.
In researching this I learned more about how the test works, and according to reddit (source of all wisdom), Embark acknowledges that breeds are not a science, but rather (like human race or the definition of a continent*) something that a bunch of people agree is true without consistently delineable and replicable evidence. Therefore, Embark asks the people in charge of gatekeeping breeds to provide DNA from animals those people agree are representative, and Embark uses that as their standard.
So now I'm much more interested in what Embark thinks about Daphne's DNA, because apparently it's really based on something. (Does the something matter? Only as much as you want it to. I appreciate it when people trying to convince me of something (in this case by offering their service in exchange for money) acknowledge this and are straightforward about limitations as well as strengths.)
Also, reportedly people with purebred dogs often get a "100%" result on DNA tests, which I was skeptical of prior to my reddit investigation. I don't have a DNA test for Whinnie (supposedly a purebred Cairn despite her size and color), but I have one for Mimi and it looks like this: Chow, Shetland Sheepdog, Shih Tzu, Mixed Breed, Mixed Breed, Mixed Breed, Mixed Breed, Mixed Breed. I mean, fair, right? But in her lifetime I met two other dogs who looked very similar to her and heard of a third, unlike Whinnie, who remains entirely unique in my experience. (I get that you can't tell by looking. But I hear phenotype is still a 20-30% indicator, which isn't much but it isn't nothing either.)
...This was going to be like a three-sentence post, so that's typical.
*The continent thing is really funny though; if you're bored you should definitely google "why isn't Greenland a continent?" (Don't ask AI; the synthesized LLM answer is boring. This is a great discussion, though: Why Greenland is an Island and Australia is a Continent, by Emily Upton, which includes a variety of post-scripts with comments including, "The truest part of the article is the implication that the whole concept of continents is borderline incoherent.")
Anyway, as I was about to say, almost half of the winter sowing containers have germinated seeds! Here they are on the porch, getting some air. (Just the containers, the seeds are basically invisible. You might have to take my word that sprouts exist. The lupines are big though, and the gay feathers are red, so it's neat to see some variety even when they're tiny.)
( pictures )
And down the hill by the dogwood garden, we have: dogs! Sometimes you decide to clean out a garden and dogs show up; it's so great. Especially when they entertain your dog and keep her from wandering off.
( pictures )
In researching this I learned more about how the test works, and according to reddit (source of all wisdom), Embark acknowledges that breeds are not a science, but rather (like human race or the definition of a continent*) something that a bunch of people agree is true without consistently delineable and replicable evidence. Therefore, Embark asks the people in charge of gatekeeping breeds to provide DNA from animals those people agree are representative, and Embark uses that as their standard.
So now I'm much more interested in what Embark thinks about Daphne's DNA, because apparently it's really based on something. (Does the something matter? Only as much as you want it to. I appreciate it when people trying to convince me of something (in this case by offering their service in exchange for money) acknowledge this and are straightforward about limitations as well as strengths.)
Also, reportedly people with purebred dogs often get a "100%" result on DNA tests, which I was skeptical of prior to my reddit investigation. I don't have a DNA test for Whinnie (supposedly a purebred Cairn despite her size and color), but I have one for Mimi and it looks like this: Chow, Shetland Sheepdog, Shih Tzu, Mixed Breed, Mixed Breed, Mixed Breed, Mixed Breed, Mixed Breed. I mean, fair, right? But in her lifetime I met two other dogs who looked very similar to her and heard of a third, unlike Whinnie, who remains entirely unique in my experience. (I get that you can't tell by looking. But I hear phenotype is still a 20-30% indicator, which isn't much but it isn't nothing either.)
...This was going to be like a three-sentence post, so that's typical.
*The continent thing is really funny though; if you're bored you should definitely google "why isn't Greenland a continent?" (Don't ask AI; the synthesized LLM answer is boring. This is a great discussion, though: Why Greenland is an Island and Australia is a Continent, by Emily Upton, which includes a variety of post-scripts with comments including, "The truest part of the article is the implication that the whole concept of continents is borderline incoherent.")
Anyway, as I was about to say, almost half of the winter sowing containers have germinated seeds! Here they are on the porch, getting some air. (Just the containers, the seeds are basically invisible. You might have to take my word that sprouts exist. The lupines are big though, and the gay feathers are red, so it's neat to see some variety even when they're tiny.)
( pictures )
And down the hill by the dogwood garden, we have: dogs! Sometimes you decide to clean out a garden and dogs show up; it's so great. Especially when they entertain your dog and keep her from wandering off.
( pictures )
Baked Beans for Breakfast AKA The Secret Summer, by Ruth Chew
Apr. 4th, 2026 09:21 amrachelmanija
Click on my Ruth Chew tag to see what sort of books she's known for: small-scale children's fantasies focusing on magic-infused everyday objects and creatures in Brooklyn. This is her hard-to-find first book, which is not a fantasy.
The main characters are a brother and sister who were left, along with their never-seen younger brother and sister, in the care of their grandmother who feeds them canned tomatoes - yuck! They leave a note saying they're doing a long sleepover at a friend's house, then run away to the site where they often went camping, buy a cheap boat, and live on an island.
This is entertaining enough on its own, but mostly of interest because it shows how she course-corrected in her fantasy books: the flaws in this book are corrected, and she melds its strengths (likable kid characters, a focus on the practicalities and small details of both the human and natural worlds, a friendly old woman) with excellent small-scale magic. In all the rest of her books, there are just two kids - no unnecessary and off-page younger siblings. There are no mean kids or bullying (this book has two mean bullies who just drop out of the story). The parents are around but the kids' adventures take place out of sight, so there's no implausible runaway plots. And the old ladies are witches, which makes them even better!
Books Received, March 28 — April 3
Apr. 4th, 2026 09:25 amjames_davis_nicoll
Seven books new to me. Five fantasy, two science fiction, of which at least three are series.
Books Received, March 28 — April 3
Poll #34443 Books Received, March 28 — April 3
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 25
Which of these look interesting?
View Answers
The Photonic Effect by Mike Chen (April 2026)
9 (36.0%)
Nobody’s Quest by Alyssa Day (June 2026)
6 (24.0%)
This Wild Wanting by Sophie Gonzales (November 2026)
3 (12.0%)
The Killing of a Chestnut Tree by Oliver K. Langmead (November 2026)
8 (32.0%)
Mark of the Warrior by Fonda Lee & Shannon Lee (October 2026)
8 (32.0%)
The Frozen King by Pari Thomson (Ocober 2026)
1 (4.0%)
Wolfpack by Rem Wigmore (April 2026)
8 (32.0%)
Some other option (see comments)
0 (0.0%)
Cats!
19 (76.0%)
Glitter always shimmers in the limelight
Apr. 3rd, 2026 10:26 pmsovayThe moon looks like a Constable watercolor in black and olive and cratered parchment. I have seen the latest pictures of Earth. I can't turn off the part of my brain that brings around you may leave here for four days in space, but I worried so much about that launch.
This morning was marked by the municipal pruning of trees on our street. When the racket moved far enough around the block to become merely obnoxious, I went back to listening to byways of Flanders and Swann. In the afternoon Hestia saw a cardinal in the yew and almost went through the glass.
I recognize that midlife m/m amid the mussel beds of North Wales is the single most stereotypical choice I could make out of this year's lineup for Wicked Queer, but I am still seriously considering On the Sea (2025). It would be a sure bet if I didn't have to think about parking at the MFA.
I would like the next week to involve much less talking to doctors. None would be an ideal.
This morning was marked by the municipal pruning of trees on our street. When the racket moved far enough around the block to become merely obnoxious, I went back to listening to byways of Flanders and Swann. In the afternoon Hestia saw a cardinal in the yew and almost went through the glass.
I recognize that midlife m/m amid the mussel beds of North Wales is the single most stereotypical choice I could make out of this year's lineup for Wicked Queer, but I am still seriously considering On the Sea (2025). It would be a sure bet if I didn't have to think about parking at the MFA.
I would like the next week to involve much less talking to doctors. None would be an ideal.
Not so random peeve of the day
Apr. 3rd, 2026 09:31 pmjames_davis_nicollIn the TV show I am watching, the protagonist keeps looking away from the road while driving.
starandreaThe dahlias at the front of the shelf hadn't reached the light, but it turns out the ones in the back had. So I put the lights on top of the shelf instead of underneath it, which should work for, idk, the weekend.
(Are these dahlias stashed in a closet because I ran out of room on actual plant shelves? Yes they are. Luckily we used the same kind of shelves. Unluckily, all the things that were on those shelves are now on the floor. Hmm.)
( picture )
Unlike the dahlias, the inch plant is definitely getting too much light.
( pink plant )
Outdoors, more sprouts in the winter seed sowing containers: poppies, Iceland poppies, blue aster, gay feather, and butterfly weed.
( just the poppies )
And the mini daffodils are getting ready to open!
( picture )
Finally, Daphne's DNA kit went in the mail today...
( DNA dog )
And then she helped me disassemble the kicksled for storage. (So we have more room for plants on the patio, Marci says.)
( sled adventure )
(Are these dahlias stashed in a closet because I ran out of room on actual plant shelves? Yes they are. Luckily we used the same kind of shelves. Unluckily, all the things that were on those shelves are now on the floor. Hmm.)
( picture )
Unlike the dahlias, the inch plant is definitely getting too much light.
( pink plant )
Outdoors, more sprouts in the winter seed sowing containers: poppies, Iceland poppies, blue aster, gay feather, and butterfly weed.
( just the poppies )
And the mini daffodils are getting ready to open!
( picture )
Finally, Daphne's DNA kit went in the mail today...
( DNA dog )
And then she helped me disassemble the kicksled for storage. (So we have more room for plants on the patio, Marci says.)
( sled adventure )
Aurora Reminder
Apr. 3rd, 2026 11:37 amjames_davis_nicollA reminder to Canadian citizens and permanent residents: you have but a day to vote on the Aurora Awards!
I am but one of the eligible candidates. Each of us is as Canadian as possible under the circumstances. M
ore information here.
I am but one of the eligible candidates. Each of us is as Canadian as possible under the circumstances. M
ore information here.
Seasons of Glass and Iron: Stories by Amal El-Mohtar
Apr. 3rd, 2026 09:23 amjames_davis_nicoll
A collection of (Michael Hanson voice) speculative fiction stories from Amal El-Mohtar.
Seasons of Glass and Iron: Stories by Amal El-Mohtar
We're burning up together, baby, that makes two
Apr. 3rd, 2026 05:17 amsovayI had a miserable day and the night has not been an improvement, but rushthatspeaks sent me Rina Sawayama's anthemically queer "This Hell" (2022) and spatch stuck his head around the door of my office with an upside-down Peep in his mouth like something out of Bosch, so I think we're all set for Good Friday. Previously I had been cheering myself up with the 1984 BBC Titus Groan and Gormenghast and a 1945 photo of Donald Swann.
rushthatspeaks sent me Rina Sawayama's anthemically queer "This Hell" (2022) and spatch stuck his head around the door of my office with an upside-down Peep in his mouth like something out of Bosch, so I think we're all set for Good Friday. Previously I had been cheering myself up with the 1984 BBC Titus Groan and Gormenghast and a 1945 photo of Donald Swann.church explorations
Apr. 2nd, 2026 10:17 pmjulianI'm a Unitarian Universalist, not quite birthright but almost. (We started going when I was about 4.) My parents are both lapsed Episcopalians, and wanted somewhere to give me a community and a religious upbringing, so they went with the Dedham Unitarians.
At that point, in the mid-1970s, the UU Church as a whole had much more of the Christian vestiges than it has now, but they were also very much connected (I feel) to the Spirit of the 60s, as well. The denomination has since become Less Officially Christian, which is (for me) a Good Thing, though some individual churches are more steeped in it. (I just don't attend those, because I don't mix well with Christianity on an ongoing basis.)
While I'm pagan and find my spirituality in nature and in intent, I first found it in community and liberal religious faith, and have the UU church in my blood and psyche. I have spent some years of my life not involved in a church, and some years involved, and it always makes me feel better about life to *be* involved in community with others, so I've been casting about, past month or two, to see which UU church will work for me, locally. (My town doesn't have one.) I'm currently going with, basically, checking out some of the ones within about 15 miles/25 minutes' drive. (I may look at a few others slightly further out, like Fitchburg or Bolton or Harvard, but only if I can't feel OK with any of the three I'm considering now.)
There's one in Groton (MA), which would have the advantage of being on the way to/from work, so I could maybe sometimes drop in on evening activities on the way home. Unlike a lot of places I've been at, they do do a *lot* of non-Sunday stuff, which is cool if mostly unworkable with my current work schedule. On a less good note, their minister's been there for *20 years*, which is a long damn time. This worries me, tbh; I might like her a lot and then she'd retire soon, or it might be that the place has calcified around her, or, you know, many other possibilities. The one time I went on Sunday, it was a perfectly nice and very welcoming place, but I miscalculated/didn't read the webpage right, and the minister was off that week. Also it's a freakin' classic Old New England Church Building (which is what I grew up with and am bored by) and feels pretty suburban as a community. I'm leaning toward no, but I do want to meet the minister first.
I enjoyed the Nashua (NH) church when I went, but it's more urban than I like, and also, they do Joys and Concerns in a stupid way, so I will use this as a reason to Not Go There More.
Um, let me restart that. In some Christian churches, they have weekly prayers for people, and the Episcopalians (with whom I have nodding acquaintance) often read them aloud during service. (I know other denominations do too, just, I don't know as much about, for example, Methodists.) The UU Church instead has incorporated a thing (at many parishes) where, at Sunday services, they have people who want to talk about a good thing or a stressful thing in their lives come up and light a candle, and (briefly) talk about it. (And the rest of the folks there that day can send them hope, love, congratulatory or concerned expressions, supportive energy, or a kind thought.) I think this is neat and, among other things, can decentralize the minister as the sole focus of the service, and can also let people get to know each other more.
Anyway, so Nashua does it by having people write down their joy or concern, and the lay worship leader then reads them out, instead. Nope! Dun' like it. Impersonal and hierarchical. So, no.
I went to the Milford (NH) church last week, and they're the leaders in the clubhouse at the moment, despite being in entirely the wrong direction for the rest of my life. Milford's a larger town than Groton, and feels more funky-urbanish even though it's only 16,000 people or so, and there's a domestic violence support organization right next door to the church, which is neat (for my particular interests, anyway). Unfortunately, the pagan store I finally was able to go to, after a few attempts to find it open over the past couple months, was literally closing for the last time that day. (I mean, at least everything was 50% off? Also, they're going to be keeping going via an online presence.) But it's still a reasonably off-kilter town even so.
Unlike my other two exploratory visits at Nashua and Groton, the minister was actually there, which was a pleasant change. This was the 1st anniversary of her starting ministry in Milford, and the church had had some major (unspoken in the service) divisions, and she came out of retirement to take over and, basically, help heal them. (After having a major accident of her own that she's still recovering from, so, healing and recovery not just one way.) All the readings/meditations were based around the theme of growth and coming together, and she basically opened the sermon up by talking about how she came to be minister to the church, and then invited parishioners to talk -- about a moment of beauty in their lives, or a moment of reconnection, or a moment that encapsulated the church, for them. And some people talked about their private lives, and some people talked about church stuff, and it all worked rather well.
And then afterwards they had a rainbow potluck. (With some of the foods being rainbow-y, and some being one specific color of the rainbow.) Which, entertaining. Plus I met some neurodiverse pagan SF geeks, so that was *also* nice.
Anyway. Not decided yet, but... leaning.
At that point, in the mid-1970s, the UU Church as a whole had much more of the Christian vestiges than it has now, but they were also very much connected (I feel) to the Spirit of the 60s, as well. The denomination has since become Less Officially Christian, which is (for me) a Good Thing, though some individual churches are more steeped in it. (I just don't attend those, because I don't mix well with Christianity on an ongoing basis.)
While I'm pagan and find my spirituality in nature and in intent, I first found it in community and liberal religious faith, and have the UU church in my blood and psyche. I have spent some years of my life not involved in a church, and some years involved, and it always makes me feel better about life to *be* involved in community with others, so I've been casting about, past month or two, to see which UU church will work for me, locally. (My town doesn't have one.) I'm currently going with, basically, checking out some of the ones within about 15 miles/25 minutes' drive. (I may look at a few others slightly further out, like Fitchburg or Bolton or Harvard, but only if I can't feel OK with any of the three I'm considering now.)
There's one in Groton (MA), which would have the advantage of being on the way to/from work, so I could maybe sometimes drop in on evening activities on the way home. Unlike a lot of places I've been at, they do do a *lot* of non-Sunday stuff, which is cool if mostly unworkable with my current work schedule. On a less good note, their minister's been there for *20 years*, which is a long damn time. This worries me, tbh; I might like her a lot and then she'd retire soon, or it might be that the place has calcified around her, or, you know, many other possibilities. The one time I went on Sunday, it was a perfectly nice and very welcoming place, but I miscalculated/didn't read the webpage right, and the minister was off that week. Also it's a freakin' classic Old New England Church Building (which is what I grew up with and am bored by) and feels pretty suburban as a community. I'm leaning toward no, but I do want to meet the minister first.
I enjoyed the Nashua (NH) church when I went, but it's more urban than I like, and also, they do Joys and Concerns in a stupid way, so I will use this as a reason to Not Go There More.
Um, let me restart that. In some Christian churches, they have weekly prayers for people, and the Episcopalians (with whom I have nodding acquaintance) often read them aloud during service. (I know other denominations do too, just, I don't know as much about, for example, Methodists.) The UU Church instead has incorporated a thing (at many parishes) where, at Sunday services, they have people who want to talk about a good thing or a stressful thing in their lives come up and light a candle, and (briefly) talk about it. (And the rest of the folks there that day can send them hope, love, congratulatory or concerned expressions, supportive energy, or a kind thought.) I think this is neat and, among other things, can decentralize the minister as the sole focus of the service, and can also let people get to know each other more.
Anyway, so Nashua does it by having people write down their joy or concern, and the lay worship leader then reads them out, instead. Nope! Dun' like it. Impersonal and hierarchical. So, no.
I went to the Milford (NH) church last week, and they're the leaders in the clubhouse at the moment, despite being in entirely the wrong direction for the rest of my life. Milford's a larger town than Groton, and feels more funky-urbanish even though it's only 16,000 people or so, and there's a domestic violence support organization right next door to the church, which is neat (for my particular interests, anyway). Unfortunately, the pagan store I finally was able to go to, after a few attempts to find it open over the past couple months, was literally closing for the last time that day. (I mean, at least everything was 50% off? Also, they're going to be keeping going via an online presence.) But it's still a reasonably off-kilter town even so.
Unlike my other two exploratory visits at Nashua and Groton, the minister was actually there, which was a pleasant change. This was the 1st anniversary of her starting ministry in Milford, and the church had had some major (unspoken in the service) divisions, and she came out of retirement to take over and, basically, help heal them. (After having a major accident of her own that she's still recovering from, so, healing and recovery not just one way.) All the readings/meditations were based around the theme of growth and coming together, and she basically opened the sermon up by talking about how she came to be minister to the church, and then invited parishioners to talk -- about a moment of beauty in their lives, or a moment of reconnection, or a moment that encapsulated the church, for them. And some people talked about their private lives, and some people talked about church stuff, and it all worked rather well.
And then afterwards they had a rainbow potluck. (With some of the foods being rainbow-y, and some being one specific color of the rainbow.) Which, entertaining. Plus I met some neurodiverse pagan SF geeks, so that was *also* nice.
Anyway. Not decided yet, but... leaning.
starandrea♥ Dog
DNA test has been administered. This will test the requirement that the swab be in the dog's mouth for at least 30 seconds, as Daphne was not super keen on that idea, and it is unclear how much DNA is actually on the swab as a result. That's okay! I'm sure they receive questionable tests all the time, and there was nothing on their website about what happens if the swab is insufficient. Perhaps a small amount of DNA is acceptable for a small dog?
♥ Plants
Dahlias are not quite touching the light above them and still show no signs of sunburn, so I have not yet intervened. I did turn down the replacement light in the other room, as the inch plant has turned a vibrant purple and the leaves of the multi-colored geranium are now variegated, both of which indicate high light levels. This particular light has five levels of brightness, and of course I started it on the brightest setting. Turning it down is less straightforward, since I bought it because I already have one just like it that the plants love.
The issue is that the brightness can only be adjusted by remote control, and the remote control is not light-specific. This has already meant that the two lights are always both on or both off, so they're on the same schedule, which is fine. But now it has a new effect, which oddly is not "the lights are always at the same brightness level." Instead, apparently I can have both lights very bright, I can have one light at half-brightness and the other at full, or I can have one light at the lowest setting and the other at half. I am not sure why this is. (I have tried aiming the remote at each of the lights, aiming the remote away from each of the lights, etc., though I have not done dedicated proximity research, so it's still possible the effect of the remote can be further isolated.)
For now I have one bright and one half-bright. It's a partly cloudy day on that side of the room.
♥ The Untamed
( Episode 1 )
( Episode 2 )
DNA test has been administered. This will test the requirement that the swab be in the dog's mouth for at least 30 seconds, as Daphne was not super keen on that idea, and it is unclear how much DNA is actually on the swab as a result. That's okay! I'm sure they receive questionable tests all the time, and there was nothing on their website about what happens if the swab is insufficient. Perhaps a small amount of DNA is acceptable for a small dog?
♥ Plants
Dahlias are not quite touching the light above them and still show no signs of sunburn, so I have not yet intervened. I did turn down the replacement light in the other room, as the inch plant has turned a vibrant purple and the leaves of the multi-colored geranium are now variegated, both of which indicate high light levels. This particular light has five levels of brightness, and of course I started it on the brightest setting. Turning it down is less straightforward, since I bought it because I already have one just like it that the plants love.
The issue is that the brightness can only be adjusted by remote control, and the remote control is not light-specific. This has already meant that the two lights are always both on or both off, so they're on the same schedule, which is fine. But now it has a new effect, which oddly is not "the lights are always at the same brightness level." Instead, apparently I can have both lights very bright, I can have one light at half-brightness and the other at full, or I can have one light at the lowest setting and the other at half. I am not sure why this is. (I have tried aiming the remote at each of the lights, aiming the remote away from each of the lights, etc., though I have not done dedicated proximity research, so it's still possible the effect of the remote can be further isolated.)
For now I have one bright and one half-bright. It's a partly cloudy day on that side of the room.
♥ The Untamed
( Episode 1 )
( Episode 2 )