Done Since 2026-01-25
2026-02-03 10:04 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mdlbearNote that this was written on Monday, 2 February, but is being posted on Tuesday the 3rd because posting from just my laptop is tedious and I have no confidencs in Sable's ability to stay up long enough.
Despite it being disaster season, it's been a pretty good week, modulo exhausting travel and (voluntarily) limited sleep, all thanks to Contabile, the main UK filk convention. N and m went last year; this year we all went (m traveling separately because they're living in the UK now). It's been a very good weekend, and not a bad week before that.
As usual, I'm unlikely to write a separate trip report later (one can hope, but...). The trip was definitely an adventure, taking the ferry from Hoek de Holland to Harwich, then two trains and a cab to the con hotel. The premium lounge on the ferry serves surprisingly good food. So does the con hotel, the Wensum Valley Hotel, about a 20 minute cab ride outside Norwich.
My travel planning and prep has definitely declined. The biggest problem was taking a laptop with a grossly inadequate batter -- I should have taken (Framework 12)Lilac, instead of (Thinkpad x230)Sable, which is definitely showing its age, and has a usable batter life measured in minutes. The list of forgotten stuff is under the cut following the entry for Friday.
Notes & links: 0125Su * walk: 10:33 DSB804 .64km, 5hp, 20mm, 19min, 1100st, * SL: cat litter (for delivery Monday, because we're out @ Could We See A 2026 US Debt Crisis? | by Andrew Zuo | Jan, 2026 | Medium * hx work session ~2h? * unbox SainSmart/Genmitsu Cubiko CNC Router and accessories. -> the box it came in makes a low (but usable for setup) stand, as well as storage space for the laser, 2kRPM spindle, pen-holder, and dust shoe. -> the power brick, parts box, etc. went into a Bol box. @ The Forgotten Winter Drink That's Too Good To Miss - YouTube Hot Buttered Rum * set alarm for tomorrow's appointment @ Cynthia McQuillin (July 25, 1953 – January 14, 2006) @ Attending a Protest | Surveillance Self-Defense * email to kids, J planning US trip -> started, in PJ/email-for-us-trip 0126Mo ~ email to R' asking how they're doing -> got email so don't have to write a query * reply with trip planning email (draft in PJ) * 12:15 leave on -Lizzy- _Romann_ for 13:00 psych @ Parnassia with C. Ramspek -> still lots of trouble controlling direction. Pushed it (unpowered) over tracks *- remember to ask for new prescription for bupropion, -if- _needed_ -> 150mg 2/day. -> will call after consulting, but this is probably our last appointment & took cognitive function test (was sitting on desk from another patient) -> short term memory a problem. badly flunked the item recall, squeaked by on the fluency test (how many words beginning with B can you say in a minute) * hx work session * 1h test driving/pushing Romann @ Why Minnesota Can’t Do More to Stop ICE | WIRED ~ call USBank 800-872-2657 -> login is working now. Damned if I know what the problem was, but I don't have to call them $ T neither of my USB accounts earned $10 or more interest, so no 1099. : my Travelpro Maxlite 5 international rollaboard arrived. It has several features that my previous one (given to j) didn't, inclucing a combination lock and the small outside pocket that the old one only pretended to have. Win. 0127Tu * set alarm for tomorrow's appointment & switching to Lawnchair launcher because Nova has been enshittified. Lawnchair "no clever tagline needed." * take pictures of layouts on both phones. * install @ UN Declares That the World Has Entered an Era of 'Global Water Bankruptcy' “The bitter reality for many water systems worldwide is that they are facing both insolvency and irreversibility,” I note with wry amusement that H2O is a solvent... & go out to Apotheek on Lizzy to get bupropion; hit geldmaat on the way for D" G normally does that, but having dropped his card somewhere,... @ Redditors Are Mounting a Resistance Against ICE | WIRED @ THE DILDO DISTRIBUTION DELEGATION funny, antifa * trip planning email to E and J -> done. * call -> email HWW about personal alarm bill (payment to wrong account) * attach screenshot of Bunq transaction, photo of letter * hx work session * packing 0128We Challenger 40 years ago @ Space Shuttle Challenger disaster - Wikipedia Songs: Keep the Dream Alive -> posted in #filkhaven's #media-room channel, mastodon Steve aka mdlbear: "So, forty years ago I wrote a song…" - Indieweb.Social * 9am D" -> not my catbox * pack * yukata, x CDs, * CPAP can't find the little Shure earbud case with USB adapters etc. Have the earbuds. found a pair of BotL undershorts in the CPAP case, though. Save for tomorrow. -> G advised against taking CDs because we don't want to deal with VAT, customs, etc -> CPAP bag fits fine on the suitcase (it was insanely tight on the old Crew5) -> underwear for the ferry and the next morning * 1315 Uber booked for 13:45 Haga Hematology *- anemia *- feeling cold in the evening (after around 4pm) *- shortness of breath *- anemia or heart trouble? *- edema? itchy swelling? -> blood draw. Will call 0218 to discuss whether I need a bone marrow biopsy. * packing: decisions to make, things to do *- print current med list from pharmacy, with bupropion *- take both phones? (ask G) -> yes *- any problem with meds not in prescription packaging? (ask N) -> not that she knows *- N probably still has my folding phone stand o get it from her *- which laptop to take: Lilac or Sable. I am leaning toward Sable because I have not gotten Lilac anywhere _near_ parity. discord, signal not installed; mozilla profile would have to be copied over, no encrypted account. Crap. @ Bruce Springsteen - Streets Of Minneapolis (Official Audio) - YouTube * hx work session * packing * singing: Keep the Dream Alive 0129Th * say goodbye to the cats and say how long I'll be away * hx work session @ posted: mdlbear | Music: Challenger - forty years ago today : start s4s post about Columbia, also Dad (0205Mo) : Realized that Keep the Dream Alive, Rocket Rider's Prayer, Stuff That Dreams are Made Of, and Rainbow's Edge could make a good Bandcamp EP. Title Disaster Season? : Nova's mirror disk has gotten itself unplugged, which isn't surprising considering where it is. The question is whether to fix it now or when I get back. & 25ml Black Blood of the Earth for second coffee * 10am * charge watch, run dishwasher * 11am last minute pack: * watch charger, * meds box, * cane, * US phone, laptop * noon: taxi arrives -- leave for con. -> arrive !23:30 (00:30 CET), so a 12-hour trip * On board the Stena Brittania -- the free food in the premium lounge is ok; the fish and chips appears to be the best of their lunch/dinner offerings. I had that for lunch, and the Swedish meatballs for dinner. Lunch was better. The buffet has red and white wine on tap, hummus, apples, pears, olives, cheddar, and a couple of different (greens-free) salads : Sable's battery is shot. A few hours on sleep was enough to drain it to 20%, and it shut itself down, uncleanly, a few seconds later. Had to reinstall Discord -> don't sleep it -- shut it down if it's going to be more than a few minutes : Also, I should have taken my phone battery. * walk: on and off ferry, 7hp, 5800st, 37min, (watch) 4km, 56min : The room is tiny and has few usable outlets. Current jury rig: outlet cube plugged in by desk in place of the TV. Three things plugged into it: 1. Power adapter for phone and watch, 2. power brick for Sable, 3. extension cord; The little Anker power adapter is plugged into the ext. cord for CPAP and phone. Also: shower, no washcloths : The beautiful blue tie-dyed shirt has a rip near the end of a sleeve. patchable? 0130Fr * breakfast in hotel (served from 7am to 9:30; I got there 8:30ish) * hx work session -> convention * lunch with N and G in the bar (we arrived slightly before the restaurant opened at noon. Curry of the day, Sharp's cider. G had liver and bacon, which looked fantastic -> there are outlets on the headboard, but you have to move the bed to get at them. Decided to leave stuff on the extension cord because it's less likely to get bumped when I move the bed back in place, and easier to find when we leave : I used to have a travel kit that was pretty much grab-and-go. Then we moved. @ What Happens to Linux After Linus Torvalds? We Finally Have the Answer to This Uncomfortable Question @ Dutch government could prevent American takeover of DigiD platform: tech experts * 5:30ish meet with G and N; reg opens 6pm, programming starts at 7, so we'll have dinner sometime in that interval -> missed a bit of the programming getting a COVID test -> predictably negative but if I hadn't taken it I'd have spent the whole con obsessing over it. % the back of my knee is in on agony of itching from the brace. 0130Fr-0201Su Contabile 36 (Norfilk Con 2) @ Home - Contabile 36 (Norfilk Con 2) x KF have a 30-minute set on the schedule -> declined (m health, no album, depression) 0131Sa : room cleaned 9:40 while I was in it. Mask on, not a problem; got fresh towels * hx work session convention - all day * singing: early bird circle: Rocket Rider's Prayer. Night circle: Millennium's Dawn, Stuff That Dreams are Made Of * s4s post Rocket Rider's Prayer, Keep the Dream Alive, Stuff That Dreams are Made Of, and Rainbow's Edge. Add Springsteen's "Streets of Minneapolis" (not for the EP) @ mdlbear | Songs for Saturday: Disaster season 0201Su Columbia 23 years ago @ Space Shuttle Columbia disaster - Wikipedia Keep the Dream Alive reprise % what feels like a bit of a muscle cramp in R thigh.dk @ Council of Europe Assembly backs ban on conversion practices |EuropeILGA * hx work session * singing Keep the Dream Alive, Ship of Stone % my voice is _really_ bad - dry throat and no breathing exercises. Have to fix that. * back in room ~1140ish; now 00:08 and about ready to crash % 00:21 400mg ibuprofen, biotene lozenge -> More forgotten things: badge holder; handkerchief (probably need to buy), flonase, loratidine, Should get another small power adapter and a longer ext. cord night shirt, because cold, travel-size tissues, nail clippers. stuffy, Backpack for cons, because the sling doesn't hold my songbook, music stand, etc. Maybe use sling for travel and bring the folding one for going to circles. -> cf ./checklists.done sweater not very useful but should have taken terry bathrobe