so...haven't been around for a while, so I thought I'd launch myself back in with a random question:
Would it be really fucking weird to get in touch with a teacher who went above and beyond to help me through some really, really tough shit 30 years ago to just say "hey, I've always remembered you, and I have turned out OK and am pretty successful, thanks"?
Tommy's on a new wet food only diet and I've bought his favourite Dine in bulk, it was on special and we're going through a lot. So I'm sure any day now he'll decide it's disgusting and turn up his dainty nose at it.
I didn't really buy it, but it was in a showbag from the Royal Melb Show I bought (the kitty showbag). He got a few other treats from it and a new wand toy he adores, so it wasn't a waste.
I'll just alternate between Dine and Hills until it's gone haha
T- 60 hours until CAT. I am desperate for some feline therapy. Feel completely dead and miserable today again. Even though I had a good run with the traffic - had time to grab a coffee despite the queue and got to enjoy it in the carpark outside work..
How on earth did they get ‘granular’ to mean ‘detailed’?! I’m still annoyed at ‘low hanging fruit’, ‘going forward’, and ‘the (insert topic here) space/lens’. Bloody weasel words
So tonight I'm going to an event that I have never been to before; a poetry reading at a local pub by a modern author. They have an open mic as well, but I am not even close to confident enough to consider that.
But I do consider this my first step towards the culture and being a part of a community, after dabbling so long with prose and only reading poetry books since I was a small child. I think my first book, that I can remember, is one I still have: a book of Childrens Poetry (Lewis carrol, William Blake, etc) that contributed heavily to my love of the artform.
I have no idea why I feel so anxious and nervous, or why I want to back out. I guess avoidance and the fear I'll make a fool of myself, despite not performing at all. Idk, I hope I can find a welcoming community within that space, but even if I don't, I'll still write. I don't think I could stop writing, even if I wanted to.
I know people that have been active in the poetry and spoken word scene. I can get going to something for the first time can feel daunting, but you'll be surprised how welcoming everyone is. You might find a place with a crowd you gel with and maybe you might even go up and read something.
One thing I noticed from doing standup is the bar is so, incredibly, low, and people are supportive of anyone giving things an earnest shot.
I've done open mics, storytelling, and I can agree that mostly the crowd is welcoming. You may get a few self-absorbed shits that are only there for the strokes, and these can usually be ignored. Which really pisses them off so is worth doing on those grounds alone. Consider using a nom de guerre - at least at first. It's an effective way to manage the feeling of threat to one's personal identity. A 'poetry name' is very traditional so I think you are in good company if you choose to use one.
May I suggest practising speaking out loud at home. Maybe even record yourself. Think before hand what rhythm you want and which words you will emphasise.
I've been craving broccoli for days since having a delicious yet extremely simple stir-fry of it at my aunties. Just broccoli, oil, garlif and mushroom seasoning at the end (all of which I now have).
She has a magic touch with cooking - and a much hotter burner - but I watched her make it from start to finish so I really think I could replicate something similar... broccolibroccolibroccoli I'm gonna eat a whole head of it tonight 😋
It didn't come out as nicely as hers - hers was more evenly cooked - but still pretty decent. Very moreish. My jar of mushroom seasoning has been languishing in the back of the cupboard for years, it's about time I started using it again
Going forward, the DT family will put our heads together every morning to touch base and set out the granular of the meal plans. We will start with low hanging fruits, while centering the foodie artifactual lens. Go team. We are all in this together.
I am trying to order eggs online and their system has decided I am not human. If I was a robot what would I do with eggs? Surely ordering eggs is itself an indication I am human, being able to identify animals sitting down seems a bit superfluous. And in any case as long as I pay for the eggs should it matter? Why can't robots have eggs if they want them? Seems clear discrimination to me.
Because the robots might study and use the eggs as the first part of a plot to breed a race of genetically-enhanced super-chickens, which will become the physical muscle needed in their plan to Kill All The Humans, of course.
My annoying cold seems to have turned into pneumonia. I've had very little sleep over the last two nights, just coughing and when I do manage to nod off, waking up soon after in a sea of mucus. Off to the doctor this morning.
Payroll just went off their shits at something that turned out I didn't do anything wrong but they misunderstood something and it turned out another person missed another thing but that wasn't me but is somehow still my fault and I just....wat.
reading her emails was like having a random chicken fly into my face out of nowhere and explode.
Pre-owned and pre-loved can both get in the bin. Second hand is definitely my preferred term, which I also use for pets. I really think "rescued" should only be used if you actually did more than walk in to a shelter and hand over cash.
"Thrifting" is mostly just an annoying Americanism that has no place in Australia. I will accept op-shopping as an alternative. Shopping for cheap things makes me think more Reject Shop than second-hand.
gonna go home and tell me kelpie he is second hand. I like adopted, just cause I get a lot of questions about the lack of a family resemblance. Seriously, I look nothing like a working dog.
I didn't rescue my cat or my old dog; they were rescued by other people. I just adopted them.
I mean, I don't mind the term "rescue cat" but I'd avoid it personally, as I had no hand in their rescue.
I don't like the term "bought" when referring to a pet adoption, as I feel that it is too close to possession and property (and while that is the case when it comes to the law, from a personal view animals are sentient and "buying" them I feel reduces their autonomy - again just personal preference, I don't care if other people say they bought their pet). My pets have all been integrals parts of my family units, and therefore I prefer "adoption".
Totes agree on the rescue pets. Both my guys were rescued by other people, Bill rescued from the streets and Ted from a neglectful cat farm, and then I bought them.
I like op-shopping. I think thrifting was coined because Americans are very class and money conscious. Here op shops are traditionally about supporting your community and there is no shame in that.
Out of curiosity, is it a rescue if you look after the pets while the owner is in hospital and then adopt them directly when the old owner enters palliative care? Then sort out a lot of vet care?
It doesn’t matter but I’ve always wondered how to answer in a short way how I got Melbcat.
Technically I still adopted her. Rescue to me always sounded like literally rescuing a pet from a storm drain or dog fights and rehabilitating them
Looks like my work team is going to have some big changes coming up. All good news - just people having good life changes and bigger and better things. But did they all need to confide in me today? Separately and quietly?! Walking around not saying anything but feeling sad but happy but also stressed about workload and next things.
Made it down the bellarine to check on the chillos. Asked the p's over the w/e to water them as it'd been over a week.. said they didn't need to they're fine. Got down and sure enough they certainly did need a drink. Dry as a chip.
Glad they all made it. Currently tucked in under the led disco light. A lot are getting their 2nd true leaves :)
Should start speeding up soon. This part is slowww.
Melbcat thanks you for her birthday wishes! She’s just having a chill one today, enjoyed a slant of sunlight and then some snuggling.
I wish I’d been more proactive about getting on the Internet Archive or watching stuff in general before the options got cut down. Couldn’t find the classic slashers but that’s ok I guess, been a bit stressed lately so probably don’t want to watch anything too full on.
I watched Suspiria (1977) which I’d heard about. It was… alright? Interesting in terms of shots and effects but I found it a bit hard to pay attention and some of it was a little corny.
I expected to be into it because of the soundtrack but while it was good music well executed it was also a little overwhelming, it was meant to rev you up and give a sense of panic and dread like the musical equivalent of jangling nerves and a pounding heart - but it more gave me a headache with the sound effects and banging, like over application of a heavy perfume. It was all just a little too much sensory wise. The flickering lights also probably didn’t help.
One thing I did like was the shot of the scene which the girl ran through showing that it was a reflection, and the way her own shadow seemed to be chasing her. It was really nicely done to imply a topsy turvy reality and a sense of paranoia.
It definitely did have a dreamlike/nightmarish quality with the way the scenes ran together without much context for what was going on, and the mood lighting.
Ok so there's a concert I want to go to and it's nearly all GA. Unfortunately, I am only about 4'10. It is an extra $60 for a seat in a booth. I am on a uni student budget.
I guess I'll be going for GA. Should be an experience.
Today was my last day walking to the free food market. From Friday it is moving a bit further away, so I'll probably drive instead. It will be undercover which is a big advantage, but being just a couple of blocks away was pretty handy for me.
I did get both mushrooms and cream today, so creamy mushroom sauce and a creamy brussels sprout bake are on the cards. A couple of things I grabbed turned out to have been frozen, which is not great. The salad mix I put in the freezer to go in the next dog food batch, the cherry tomatoes are in the freezer for future cooking & I'm still deciding what to do with the strawberries. Either jam or a cake probably.
Olive bread dough is sitting in a bowl in a sink of warm water. Will probably be ready to eat at around 3. And then later I'll be making chicken sausage rolls for dinner, enough to have heaps left over for dinners and lunches. :)