Done Since 2025-10-19

[mdlbear]

A better week than I was expecting? N, G, and m are at OVFF, and I'm left here with the cats (modulo the housekeeper on Saturday mornings, and j on the weekends), but it's been magageable, and not too lonely. (I'm usually somewhat isolated down here on the ground floor anyway.) The main extra work was the two extra litter boxen, and feeding Brooklyn (who I swear is part hobbit -- four meals a day). (Cricket eats only kibble, so it's just a matter of making sure her bin stays filled.)

Also, I've taken six walks (though none longer than .7km), ordered some of my favorite groceries (including fish-other-than-salmon and bread-other-than-plain), and gotten a fair amount of work done on the HyperSpace Express website. In particular, the Books page, from which you can find out where to get N's book, The World As It Ought to Be, and subscribe to her newsletter.

And I have somehow managed to log a two-year streak in Duolingo. For what that's worth. Lately that hasn't been much.

I have gotten somewhat less done yesterday and today, because OVFF over Zoom.

Those of us with hidden disabilities may be interested in the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Official website Disabilities index, search (The list is extensive.)

For those of us who couldn't get to OVFF, here are the 2025 Pegasus Award winners:

Best Villain Song: "The Evil Eyeball," Sibylle Machat
Best Hero Song: "The Ones Who Walked Away," Beth Kinderman
Best Performer: The Blibbering Humdingers
Best Writer/Composer: Eric Distad
Best Classic Filk Song: "Merry Meet," Steve Macdonald
Best Filk Song: "One Small Boat," Marilisa Valtazanou

Notes & links:
1019Su  * sift litter boxen  * brooklyn  * cricket
  & awake 5ish;
  * up 7ish; ; laundry
  * drugs:  am1 7:10; am2 8:20; pm 
  * feed Brooklyn   * 1st breakfast  * 2nd breakfast / lunch  * early dinner  o bedtime
  & top up Cricket's kibble dispenser
  @ Another ‘No Kings’ protest stretches a mile through downtown Seattle | Sea. Times
  @ Just Revealed -- the First-Ever Image of Two Black Holes Orbiting Each Other 
  % 18:25 watch was getting itchy, so took it off to charge.
    -> there are red pimplish things underneath.  So that could be a problem.
  ~ hsx work session
    ~ free story convert MD to PDF; find a place for it; link
    -> will have to convert manually.  At least this time.

1020Mo  * sift litter boxen  * brooklyn  * cricket
  & awake 5:30ish
  * up 7:30ish; ; shower; ... Dutch (730-day streak)
  * drugs:  am1 7:47; am2 08:37; 2*coffee; pm
  * feed Brooklyn   * breakfast  * 2nd breakfast  * lunch  * early dinner  o bedtime
  & have spent the last hour(?!) or more troubleshooting signal
    -> not just Signal -- turns out it's a problem at AWS
    11:40 starting to recover.
  * walk:  _near_ end of Simon Vestdijkstraat: .5km, 11mm, 2hp, 1024st (watch)
  @ Major AWS outage brings down much of the web - DCD
  @ Space Elevator
  @ Digital ID cards could be a disaster in the UK and beyond | New Scientist
  @ Major split among Anglican Communion announced
  @ Leopards Eating People's Faces Party - Wiktionary  10th anniversary
  @ The pivot - Charlie's Diary
  @ Abilene paradox - Wikipedia
    " What we're seeing right now is the fossil fuel energy economy stopping. We need it
      to stop; if it doesn't stop, we're all going to starve to death within a generation
      or so. It's already leading to resource wars, famines, political upheaval, and
      insecurity (and when people feel insecure, they rally to demagogues who promise them
      easy fixes: hence the outbreaks of fascism). "
  @ Our data journey - Fathom Analytics
  @ The World As It Ought to Be: Rivkis, Naomi: Amazon.com: Books added to HSX/Books
  * SL:  Bol:  cat litter, cat fud (mine), pantsu
  : 2-year streak in Duolingo.  FWTW.
  % could swear I ordered a microfiber towel recently, but it's not in orders on Bol or $A
    (ordered 1021 from $A)

1021Tu   * sift litter boxen  * brooklyn  o cricket
  & awake 3:25 (the watch is good for something!)
  * up 7:38; ;
  * drugs:  am1 08:00; am2 10:09; 2*coffee; pm
  * feed Brooklyn   * breakfast  * lunch  * early dinner  * bedtime
  * walk:  8:42 bridges 612st, 17min, 10mm, .48km
  @ The $8 Billion Surveillance Network Tracking Your Every Move (And the Open-Source
    Code That Beats It) | by Max Petrusenko | Sep, 2025 | Medium Flock
  @ Pluralistic: The AI that we’ll have after AI (16 Oct 2025) – Cory Doctorow
  @ Cory Doctorow: What Kind of Bubble is AI? – Locus Online
    " Our policymakers are putting a lot of energy into thinking about what they’ll do if
      the AI bubble doesn’t pop – wrangling about “AI ethics” and “AI safety.” But – as
      with all the previous tech bubbles – very few people are talking about what we’ll be
      able to salvage when the bubble is over. "
  @ The Most Epic Safety Video Ever Made #AirNZSafetyVideo - YouTube
  * 11-14 or whenever kf/hx work session
    * make G a DH account -> details recorded in hsx/work.do
  * 19:00 - 20:30 (10am-11:30 PST) Healing Center Passages support grp - 1st, 3rd Tu
  @ Grief Journeys: An Anthology | The Healing Center
  * load drugs
    -> _no_ drugs listed on pharmacy portal. WTF? Outage, presumably.

1022We  * sift litter boxen  * Brooklyn  * Cricket
  & awake 3:30
  * up 7:40; S=7:44; ..., Dutch
  : watch dropped into extreme power save ("watch only") mode
    -> have to remember to charge it in the morning
  * drugs:  am1 8ish; am2 9ish??; pm 20:00
  * feed Brooklyn   8ish breakfast ?? 2nd?  * 15:02 lunch   early dinner  o bedtime
  * walk:  8:47 DSB804 (a bridge not too far) .75km, 2hp, 14mm, 28min, 1166st
  @ Germany & Denmark Ditch Microsoft | by Burk | Medium
  @ Epiphone Back to the Future ES-345 Semi-hollowbody Electric Guitar-Sixties Cherry
    " Sorry, the Epiphone Back to the Future ES-345 Semi-hollowbody Electric Guitar -
      Sixties Cherry is no longer available. We've left this page up for reference only. "
    Gibson Honors 40 Years of Back to the Future with Guitars
  : still no drugs on portal, or on app. -- something must be wrong.
    -> portal and app have my ID, messages, etc.
    -> VGZ health insurance card still has my info.
  * 11-14 or whenever kf/hx work session
    $ HX $20 kf.com renewal.
    $ HX $50 0720 NetSol renew hyperspace-express.com
    $ GS 348 1021 DH auto-renewal for hosting goingsideways.blog
    guitar:  For Amy
    . start reconstructing past time logs (starting with yesterday)
  & made video call appointment Fri to discuss the things I haven't heard back about:
    opth. referral, drug ordering.
    Note that apparently a new version of the website was installed Monday night
  % painful/itching spot on my R ankle.  Will probably need a live appointment for that
  * free story convert MD to PDF; find a place for it; link
  * bring up kleenex and S-hook for Brooklyn
  * SL:  *horseradish, *plain corn chips/tortilla chips, *crisps, *pickles, *chocolate,
    *chocolate mousse, *pruimen, melon, beef sausage, *salami, *sultanas, *raisin bread,
    *olives, *cream cheese, *bagels if possible, *sunflower oil

1023Th  * sift litter boxen  * Brooklyn  * Cricket
  & awake 4:40
  * up 7:20; S=7:30;
    : Looks like the watch recorded an impressive amount of sleep data this time.
  * drugs:  am1 6:30ish; am2 08:38; pm 19:15
  * feed Brooklyn   * breakfast  11ish? lunch  16:47 early dinner  22:00ish bedtime
  * add Bol, AH to h.home
  $ €400 to Bunq from USB
  * walk far end of Simon Vestdijkstraat loop 10:45: .6km, 2hp, 19mm, 32min, 1333st
    The watch, which I wasn't wearing, apparently synced step count with the phone app
  * 11-14 or whenever kf/hx work session
    * link subscriber page from the mailing list landing page.  If possible, use directly
    * replace story in welcome email with link
  ~ 18:0-22:00 AH -> or else not -- everything was still in my cart this morning.  That,
    or I accidently did a "repeat previous order" somehow.  But I didn't see it where I
    expected to, in previous orders.  But I have an email.  Foo. But but but... I probably
    double-ordered.  it's okay if I did.  Nothing there I won't use in the next week.
    -> apparently double-ordered: I just (12:23) got a refund.
    -> added paper towels, rice cups, and beef sausage to order
  * reset p/w for ieee account (now under s@s; was ssa)

1024Fr  * sift litter boxen  * Brooklyn  * Cricket
  : 0000 CEST OVFF starts (1500 EDT)
  & awake 5ish
  * up 7:45ish; S=6:57; 
  * drugs:  am1 8ish; am2 08:54; pm 21:30
  * feed Brooklyn   * 8ish breakfast  11ish? lunch  17:40 early dinner  * bedtime
  * laundry
  * walk:  9:441 nearI  end of Simon Vestdijkstraat: .4km, 1hp, 730st; cold and windy
    Tried walking faster to keep warm, which didn't really work with the wind blowing
    straight into my face, but even cutting it short I barely made it home.
  @ Hidden Disabilities Sunflower - Wikipedia Official website
    Disabilities index, search
  * 11-12 or whenever kf/hx work session music
    * guitar - 20m; will want two more of those
    * scales
  * 1300-1320 With Video Bellen Dr. de Nijs (M) (Huisarts) -> zilch -> started at 13:40
    -> received SMS text with link at 13:40
    *- 1. I need to get some prescriptions re-filled but mijngezondheid.net does not have
       a record of any of my prescriptions.  Their website appears to be broken (Tu)
       *- need Amlodipine,  Doxazosin, ferrofumaraat (iron)       
    *- 2. I think I need an opthalmology referral; tried asking on mijngezondheid.net last
       week but have received no response
       -> referral to opth. at Haga.
    x- I need Bupropion 300mg; that's not a refill though
  @ Why Svelte Developers Never Go Back: The Framework That Actually Disappeared 
  * j coming over pm
  * 18-22 AH delivery -> it is now 20:03, so I should probably make dinner
    came at 20:30 just after I served dinner.  Perfect timing

1025Sa  o sift litter boxen  o Brooklyn  o Cricket (D")
  & awake 
  * up 7:47; S=6:26/8:05;
    % NB sleep time shows 
  * drugs:  am1 ~7:50; am2 08:47; pm *
  * feed Brooklyn   * breakfast  * 1300 lunch  o early dinner  o bedtime
  * walk:  8:47 H. Marsmanplantsoen .7km, 7hp, 22min, 1360st
  * 10am -> 9:30 D"
  @ Stanford AI Breakthrough: Unlock ChatGPT Creativity | Generative AI
    Verbalized Sampling: How to Mitigate Mode Collapse and Unlock LLM Diversity
    Verbalized Sampling
  @ If Git Is So Great, Why Doesn’t The Rest Of The World Use It?
  @ The Long History of Frogs as Protest Symbols | WIRED (not all that long)
  @ The ‘Surge’ of Troops May Not Come to San Francisco, but the City Is Ready Anyway
  * 11-14 or whenever kf/hx work session
    * test new subscriber machinery
    * add already-subscribed page.
    * work on colophon
  * (with j) re-organize storage room and entry for better access to things
  * 17:00 (11am EDT) OVFF Zoom coverage starts
  : 21:50 N and m sang Life Cycle of Flowers at OVFF.  I'd _just_ gotten back from the WC
  % 23:06 Cathy's concert just ended, people are going to dinner, and I'm going to crash
  : Pegasus Winners:
            Best Filk Song: One Small Boat by Marilisa Valtazanou
    Best Classic Filk Song: Merry Meet by Steve Macdonald
            Best Performer: The Blibbering Humdingers
      Best Writer/Composer: Eric Distad
            Best Hero Song: The Ones Who Walked Away by Beth Kinderman
         Best Villain Song: The Evil Eyeball by Sibylle Machat

Comments

[kshandra]

I got a sunflower lanyard in Glasgow last year; I put my RADAR key on it for ease of access. I was still wearing it when I went to the airport at the end of the trip, and the flight crew were amazingly solicitous without being patronizing about it.

I'm happy to see that three California airports have adopted the sunflower scheme; I can only hope it catches on further.

[mdlbear]

The RADAR key is brilliant! I hope it catches on.

[jesse_the_k]

I'm gonna hunt down their music, but the band name Blibbering Humdingers alone is worth an award.

Thanks for the links, as always.