Thought this might be a fun thing to get into the habit of doing.  Though I'm already doing this from memory a few days later; the game of 7 Wonders we played before this has already pretty much faded from my memory.

For a while, we tried to use negotiation to settle on a game that everybody wanted to play, but by now we're doing more of a cycle.  We put all our names into a hat (a pink cloth cowboy hat of Jinian's, to be precise), and then pick out a name; that person gets to pick the game (though not with infinite latitude, but objections have to be purely procedural, not preferential), and then their name doesn't go back into the hat until it's empty.  And having said this, I can't quite remember who it was who got to pick Talisman; I was the one to pick 7 Wonders, so it wasn't me...maybe Simon?  We've been playing the digital version on Steam on the computer, but it's mostly one human player vs. three AI players, and sometimes they can be mind-numbingly stupid, so beating them isn't always that much of an achievement.  It does mean that I've gotten more familiar with the rules...but I think not quite the same rules as our boardgame version uses.  (The computer version uses "Fate", which allows you to reroll dice, and our boardgame has none of that; the other changes tend to be more minor.)

Anyway, I ended up as the evil Wizard, Nicole as the Minster, Luke was the Prophetess, Simon was the Monk, and Jinian the Warrior (we let her pick, but the rest of us chose randomly).  Simon quickly got the Orb of Knowledge, so both him and Luke got to draw an extra card all the time.  I rarely got any spells that I actually needed, so I didn't get much chance to draw new ones.  Nicole drew most of the monster cards, and didn't win a lot of battles, but she did get three Dragons (who didn't attack her because of Minstrelness); the only animal she got to charm was a Wild Boar, though (she was disappointed that she didn't get to charm dragons, but she was happy to be able to discard the Hag).  Three people got turned into toads, between Witch, Enchantress, and the Random spell; this was how I lost my mule and a ton of stuff (including the Unicorn and the Ring) in the Inner Region, most of which Simon picked up later.  Jinian ended up with a Poltergeist, but made great use of this going back and forth between the Oasis (which had a Pool of Life) and a Desert square next to it (luckily she had the Holy Grail).

Simon got to the Crown of Command first, and nobody else really managed it.  In fact, I don't know if anybody else got past the Crypt/Mines.  So it was a bit of an unbalanced game, but at least it didn't drag on forever.  We normally play it in the afternoon, and on the table in the basement, where we can leave it set up during meals; this one we let the kids stay up late (with a break for book-reading), but it would have gone on longer if Simon had had any real competition.

And that's pretty much all the bits I remember at the moment.  We'll see if I do this again next family game...

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7/11 '15
 
 

32 hours left in Jarnsaxa Rising's Indiegogo campaign. It's been a learning experience. I still haven't figured out the difference between annoying and persuasive. Today I did a lot of editing, and I have more work to do tonight. 

Jill was persuasive. She got Rodney Anonymous and Kyle Cassidy to re-tweet links to the campaign. We also got 32 new likes on the podcast's Facebook page in one day

I have more work to do, so I need to get off the internet and do some more work before I get tired. But, here is some other news. 

This exists, and has a program at a prison in Philadelphia:

New Leash On Life

There is a possibility that we might, maybe, possibly, be able to adopt a dog through this organization. Vince fell in love with one, and applied. We won't know if we get this dog or not until mid-August. 

An NBC news piece about the program said, "According to Philadelphia prison stats, 41 percent of the inmates released in 2013 will be rearrested in Philadelphia county after one year. Compare that to just 14 percent of inmates from the canine program." 

If our application is accepted, we do some visits, to see if we're a good fit. Because Vince is an employee of the District Attorney's office, the city covers our adoption fee (as an incentive to adopt).  All I can say right now is that this means we might have have a big, young, trained dog by fall. 

Ok. back to work. 

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7/2 '15 7 Comments
Eeeee! What kind of derg?
Maybe, maybe, maybe, maybe... A blue Great Dane. With floppy earrrz.
Eeeeeeee! JD is half Great Dane and he's got that fabulous Great Dane face. La la la! Derrrrrrrg! Gaaaaaah! ((bounce bounce))

OK, so now for the hard question: Was the dog V's idea? If so, I'll pay you $15 if you write up a little contract that makes V promise to walk Macy /n/ times, miles, or hours per week. You don't want Macy to be a source of under-the-surface resentment.

My brother's wife wanted a dog, Jeff said no because they're all grisly over-scheduled. She and the kids begged, and Jeff said "Who is gonna walk the dog and train the dog? " and everyone swore they would, and nobody did. So they have a spastic, undisciplined dog and Jeff really resents it. Yes it's cute and stuff, but he's the one taking care of it and he didn't want it. Jeff's wife thought the magic solution would be to send the dog away to obedience school, but nobody kept the training up at home to ensure those habits stayed habits, and they're back to a spastic dog again.

I'm not trying to be a Debbie Downer, especially because I know there is no love more pure and perfect than DERG LOVE. (Eeeeeeeeee!!).
Yeah. I said I wanted an iron fucking clad fucking commitment that he would walk her etc. I said I didn't want to be the only person taking care of the dog. He says he will take care of her.

I think another thing that will make things easier is that we're becoming friendly with our dog-people neighbors, who walk their dog morning and evening, and their dog socializes in the local dog circle. so, that may make things easier for both of us.
 

This has nothing to do with anything and there are many more exciting things you could be reading right now. Supreme court decision, ISIS attacks, go read something more interesting. I'll wait. 

tall, and tan, and young, and lovely, the girl, from Ip-a-nema goes walking and...

Oh, good, you're back. OK. 

The other day, I was thinking, "hey, shouldn't Benedict Cumberbatch and Sophie Hunter's kid should have been born about now? they must have named it." 

Google... news... yep, born. Name? Nothing. 

On the one hand, it's good that a celebrity couple is keeping their kid's name and image out of the media spot light. 

On the other hand, come on. Please tell me that the kid's name is Sophedict Huntabitch, and that its middle name is Danger. 

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6/26 '15 1 Comment
This is a rap song in waiting.
 

Cream of wheat (since I made it upon request then the kid decided she wasn't hungry for breakfast) , coffee, coffee ... OoooOh, then fresh cherries from my pseudo-csa (I.e, I give my retired neighbor $15-20 to hit the local farmers market for me, since he goes anyway) What, pseudo csa included a pie ?!!? We talked about this yesterday!! Only fruits & veges! I'm dieting! I'm at my "scary" weight! Le sigh.

I felt like a cad returning the pie to him, my friendly neighbor. 

Leftover tortellini, handful of sunflower seeds. Iced Tea. Hot Tea (Fighting a head cold)

Fresh Corn on the cob! , leftover 1/2 a porkchop. Cherries, cherries cherries! And 2 fresh strawberries as I chopped up the delivered pint.

also, 1.1 miles on treadmill. And ate a few more cherries

hungry, and the interwebs keep showing me food posts tonight. Going to bed early.

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6/23 '15
 

Saturday was a Life Peak Experience.

Jenn and I went to a fundraiser at Laurel Hill Cemetery, their Soulstice party. It was basically a cocktails and nibbles party, and because the weather report was threatening rain, not that many people were there. We had a nice wander around the tombstones. The music was provided by DJ Scopitone, who plays early-20th-century music on two antique Victrolas (Victrolae?). They are no joke. You can get a fake victrola with a fancy horn that plays vinyl record albums, but these really depended on hand crank technology. The music echoed off of the tombstones like something in a dream. They had balloons holding glow-sticks hanging from the trees, and a little tent with a cocktail bar. It was lovely. After dark we went for a longer walk around the outside trail of the cemetery, where it was darkest. Looking down the hill, the sky was heavy and marbelled reddish, black trees silhouetted against it, and then the white spires of the obelisks silhouetted against that, and then fireflies were dancing in the air; it looked like a fairy city. and some jazz music and a nasal-voiced singer, echoing around from all directions. 

I have to start painting or drawing again. It might almost be worth going back with a camera that has a huge lens and a tripod and picking up as much light as I possibly can, but my memory of it might be better than the reality. When I got home, Vince was already asleep, and I tried to tell him about it. He seemed slightly lucid at the time. The next morning, he said, "Did you tell me that last night you were taking photographs on another planet? It was a city of white stalactites and black trees under a red sky, with little glowing creatures flying around?"  

I had my tarot cards read. the girl who did the reading was really sweet and cheerful. I said, "I've invested a lot of time, effort and money into my MFA, but I don't have a job and I'm disillusioned." she said that I'm definitely on my right career path, this is what I'm supposed to be doing, but I have to self-promote myself like a flame-thrower. She also said that more disappointment is coming, but that I would find balance soon. She also said that I have a big strong man to help me. which is good. 

Anyway, like I said: life peak experience. 


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6/22 '15 2 Comments
Saw that guy at the Camden Magic Gardens event. He's great.
He is great. I want to have a Strangest Dream party so everything can be evocative, nothing has to match, and he can spin tunes.
Except that guarantees someone will be naked and embarrassed. And just realizing it, too. "Not AGAIN!"
Never mind.
 

Sautee garlic, mushrooms and a little spinach in olive oil. Add 1/2 cup black beans, a half-teaspoon of cumin, a dash of salt and half a tablespoon of grape must.

What — no grape must in your kitchen? Use soy sauce, if you have one of those fancy "digestive systems" I've heard so much about, or a really swanky vinegar if you're like me.

Mash well with 1/4 cup of oats (quick oats will disappear better, but it doesn't really matter). Add a little liquid for easy workability but don't drown it.

Allow to sit for 10 minutes. Set a timer so you don't get impatient.

Make patties and pan-fry in 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Heat the oil as much as you dare (olive oil scorches easily; we're talking medium low here). Cover and pan-fry for 4 minutes on each side.

Add fixins to taste and serve.

Makes roughly 3 patties.

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6/22 '15 2 Comments
Thank you. Thank you. Oh, thank you.

I went through a black-bean-burger phase for a hot minute a few years ago, which died when I couldn;t find a recipe that stuck together.

Speaking of grape must, how's your digestive system with grape seed oil? It's pricey but I think its temperature issues are slightly kinder than olive oil.
Hmm, worth trying. (I can also handle canola oil, so I'm not dyin' for high temperature cooking oils over here.)
 

I get angry at the injustice in the world. At thoughtless people. At selfishness. At unmutual behaviour.

But I can't change people. I can't change the world. So all the anger just sits there and festers. "I'm always angry."

But constant anger is constant stress, and constant stress is very damaging. So I tamp it down. I say I don't care. I shrug it off.

But I can't seem to just diminish my response to anger. Everything else gets diminished, too. If I don't feel anger, I also don't feel joy, I don't feel love.

But that's depression. I have to choose between being angry or being depressed? 

How to be authentic and in the moment and emotionally responsive without burning up?

How do people do this?

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6/19 '15 4 Comments
I'm no psychologist, but I think there are a few approaches- one being suppressing the feelings (which obviously isn't working if it's affecting your quality of life otherwise). I'm thinking maybe one approach would be some kind of calming, zen-like logical response, realizing that the anger isn't going to benefit you or the situation in a tangible way, might help minimize the anger without affecting your ability to feel more positive emotions?

It's so hard to change attitudes and responses- anger is such a natural reaction to so many things, but when the things are inescapable, the anger just builds on itself and hurts you instead which sucks.

It might be something to work on with a therapist, or you could maybe develop a sort of progressive way of trying to improve your natural reactions over time, giving yourself things to try when you're faced with situations that provoke anger.
I really don't know how to "love one's enemies", and have been known to say out loud that I "hate" members of sporting teams whom I have entirely no business hating. But I do think that "love your enemies" is a good idea, and it probably starts by empathizing as much as you can with their common flawed humanity.
Spider Robinson, for whom I will always hold space in my heart, has literary characters who consistently unpack their anger by figuring out what he claims is the other side of the anger coin: fear. So I don't know if that formula works in your case, asking, "What am I afraid of in this instance?" But I can say from experience that my fears are generally much easier than my angers for me to work with and soothe, and that often in the process of doing that I find that any associated anger dissipates.
Jenny says wise things.

I try to figure out what I can do, and what's enough. That's what I do, and then I'm done. Sometimes it's never enough, I know.
 

New pages today. Six of notes & longhand writing, which became 5.5 typed. Pulled everything out & put it in a different environment, paid homage to BP's response to the Gulf Coast oil spill. 

New clothes washer is beautiful and it makes our clothes smell good. 

Mom tomorrow. Sleep now. 

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6/19 '15
 

This exists. 

Handiemail: Real Handwitten Words

And, they're hiring. At last, the day job I was born to work as a supplement to my fabulous lifestyle. Sadie Doyle would be proud. 

I completed my application, with the exception of a writing sample. I printed out their gridlines, put it under a piece of paper, and copied the sample text as faithfully as possible. It was a thing of beauty. 

I got all the way to the very end, and signed the sample letter with, 

"Handemal." 

According to their specs, this means I have to rewrite the whole thing from the beginning. 

Further hilarity: as I typed this, I spelled "faithfully" as "failthfully." 

Edited to add: Here's another thing. As I was copying the text, concentrating on my handwriting, and making sure my words and sentences fit within the line guides and so on, only checking to make sure everything matched (it's more like drawing, honestly), something sort of unlocked and woke up in my brain. It felt really good.  I haven't been able to find my magical purple journal for over a week now and it's driving me crazy.  My point is, long hand writing does something in terms of brain activity. 

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6/17 '15 11 Comments
This is so cool. I almost applied, then I remembered that I barely have time to write my own thank you notes!
Oh yeah. They want people to commit about 20 hours a week.

This comment has been deleted.

You'll have a better chance of getting hired than I will!
That is amazing.
Remember how people used to write letters to pass the time? As an alternative to playing cards or going for a walk? :)
I certainly used to! though I am not sure cards and walks occurred to me.
Yeah, I got lost in Austenland for a minute there. :)
This company is lifted directly from the movie "Her." I wonder if it was founded after the film came out
I haven't seen the movie, but wasn't his job that he was given a set of parameters, and then wrote a semi-original letter based on the client's request? This is just copying text. I have to keep all their mistakes and they have to sign a waiver saying that the letter won't be malicious, misleading, etc. etc.
Oof, I missed the title of your post!