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Dec. 27th, 2023 05:20 pmChristmas was planned to be in Edinburgh this year, but in a house full of cats our still-not-cat-friendly pupper would not go. So we stayed home. Nice Christmas, although I feel we're both a bit burned out. Did get to play Baldur's Gate a lot, which stood in for getting any relaxation in.
I'm working again now in twixtmas, although immediately off again tomorrow for my friend Babs funeral.
I'm working again now in twixtmas, although immediately off again tomorrow for my friend Babs funeral.
(no subject)
Oct. 8th, 2023 06:18 pmHad the best weekend up in the North East:
- Bubble tea
- Korean BBQ
- In person RP
- Karaoke wasn't the terrible nightmare I feared :)
- Old man cat lap-time. Reminded me of Az :(
All in all, fantastic fun with fantastic people.
And I have the keyrings to prove it! (one bubble tea, one RP reference !)
- Bubble tea
- Korean BBQ
- In person RP
- Karaoke wasn't the terrible nightmare I feared :)
- Old man cat lap-time. Reminded me of Az :(
All in all, fantastic fun with fantastic people.
And I have the keyrings to prove it! (one bubble tea, one RP reference !)
wild light
Sep. 17th, 2023 08:04 amAmazing 65daysofstatic gig last night, ay electric Brixton. Ostensibly playing Wild Light, but then just an amazing selection after. Don't know why I booked a London date, I think because it was one of the first announced. But glad we went, fantastic.
Beautiful Days
Aug. 23rd, 2023 02:40 pmFun Beautiful Days again this year.
Mostly good weather (one day of total downpour).
Musically.. Levellers were on form, trialled not diving into the crowd. Not keen on that! Ozric Tentacles were cool, and we spotted them in Stafford services looking lost on the way home which was fun. Of course the bar-steward sons of Val Doonican, also solid.
Not much new stuff, but Nogood Boyo were impressive. Good traditional Welsh hats to go with!
All important veggie breakfast stall news: Still no tatty patties, *but* they upped their hash brown game so all was good.
Mostly good weather (one day of total downpour).
Musically.. Levellers were on form, trialled not diving into the crowd. Not keen on that! Ozric Tentacles were cool, and we spotted them in Stafford services looking lost on the way home which was fun. Of course the bar-steward sons of Val Doonican, also solid.
Not much new stuff, but Nogood Boyo were impressive. Good traditional Welsh hats to go with!
All important veggie breakfast stall news: Still no tatty patties, *but* they upped their hash brown game so all was good.
Oh my DW.. Things have been busy.
Promotion and new doggo have been eating my life.
One gave me a dollop of imposter syndrome, but that's starting to fade. The other has given me lots of excercise, eaten some bits of my furniture and otherwise been adorable. Still no peace with the cat yet.
Nearly festival time though.
Promotion and new doggo have been eating my life.
One gave me a dollop of imposter syndrome, but that's starting to fade. The other has given me lots of excercise, eaten some bits of my furniture and otherwise been adorable. Still no peace with the cat yet.
Nearly festival time though.
Current online RPG (Vampire) is the best game I've played in years. And by far the best not IRL.
It's the first time in an awfully long time that I spend lots of time just talking to other players about the game in between sessions. Also we're all always pining for the next session, a really good sign.
( some specifics )
Long may it last!
It's the first time in an awfully long time that I spend lots of time just talking to other players about the game in between sessions. Also we're all always pining for the next session, a really good sign.
( some specifics )
Long may it last!
Alfie is much improved, except in one area: the cat.
It could be herding drive, in which case we're all good.
It could be prey drive, in which case it's not good.
We've been referred to a behaviour expert by the dogs trust. There's a four week waiting list, and we've got to sort some paperwork and vet registration before that clock starts. So honestly I think we'll know before they tell us.
I wish we could resurrect our old cat, not only because that would be some fun necromancy but also I know he'd be a better learning cat.
It could be herding drive, in which case we're all good.
It could be prey drive, in which case it's not good.
We've been referred to a behaviour expert by the dogs trust. There's a four week waiting list, and we've got to sort some paperwork and vet registration before that clock starts. So honestly I think we'll know before they tell us.
I wish we could resurrect our old cat, not only because that would be some fun necromancy but also I know he'd be a better learning cat.
(no subject)
Jun. 1st, 2023 09:58 amPuppy is HARD WORK! But hopefully will be worth it. He does have a bunch of issues, but he's young (6 months) so we should be able to turn him around.
The big thing as always is feeling safe with the cat and then a lot of things get more chill. We're a ways off that, but have de-stressed him with sheep which is a good sign.
The big thing as always is feeling safe with the cat and then a lot of things get more chill. We're a ways off that, but have de-stressed him with sheep which is a good sign.
(no subject)
May. 25th, 2023 02:29 pmDoggo meet went well! Very affectionate lovely dog. Should be picking him up tomorrow.
Doggo progress
May. 24th, 2023 04:14 pmAfter much fruitless applying to adopt dogs, from a small pool as dogs trust are reticent to say a dog can live with a cat, we are meeting one tomorrow! His name is Alfie and he's a gorgeous collie. Like our old dog blue he has a blue eye, but unlike blue one is 100% blue the other is 100% brown. I'd put a pic on here but I'm superstitious about posting before it's done and he's settled.
Honestly the only reason I feel I can post this at all is nobody I know reads this any more so it's virtually a private diary :p , no offence to you lovely random internet people who do see this.
Anyway, exciting times and I'll of course be posting more about this whatever happens.
Honestly the only reason I feel I can post this at all is nobody I know reads this any more so it's virtually a private diary :p , no offence to you lovely random internet people who do see this.
Anyway, exciting times and I'll of course be posting more about this whatever happens.
Polling stations without dogs
May. 4th, 2023 11:02 amThere's an election (local) today, which mostly reminds me I no longer have a dog to take to a polling station. To people from countries without this delight taking pictures of dogs at polling stations is a british meme, possibly now a tradition I think?
Prior example:
But I'm not sad about it because I'm now confident I'll be in on this for the next one! Our dog search has begun in earnest. Of course DW will be the first to know!
Prior example:
But I'm not sad about it because I'm now confident I'll be in on this for the next one! Our dog search has begun in earnest. Of course DW will be the first to know!
DVNE + Pijn
Apr. 18th, 2023 11:44 amReally memorable DVNE gig, supported by Pijn on Sunday at Soup. Soup being basically: a tiny basement in the Northern Quarter in Manchester. So basically an ideal venue.
Before both was a slightly delightful local band who missed being able to say their name clearly (surely the most important skill when you are in that slot?). I say delightful it was a case of personality over talent but they were still delightful.
Pijn were just amazing, to the extent I kinda thought Dvne might actually be a bit of a let-down after that. I must note that Pijn had incredible lighting that I thought was just the state of Soup's lighting; mostly dark but with the bass player well illuminated. But DVNE were all well lit so I guess it was an artistic choice? Anyway: Pijn made a delightful noise and it was good to see them up close, previous time I saw them was on the big stage at Arctangent.
Dvne though really shone as the stars, and making the most of the compressed basement atmosphere. Really just a whole room carried on the tide of sound. The contrast between the two vocalists (the female voice not being present for whatever reason) worked better than ever when you're just a foot away from them. And really giving it all.
If either of these accidentally gets to the stage where they don't play these kinds of venue I really will remember just how good this was.
Before both was a slightly delightful local band who missed being able to say their name clearly (surely the most important skill when you are in that slot?). I say delightful it was a case of personality over talent but they were still delightful.
Pijn were just amazing, to the extent I kinda thought Dvne might actually be a bit of a let-down after that. I must note that Pijn had incredible lighting that I thought was just the state of Soup's lighting; mostly dark but with the bass player well illuminated. But DVNE were all well lit so I guess it was an artistic choice? Anyway: Pijn made a delightful noise and it was good to see them up close, previous time I saw them was on the big stage at Arctangent.
Dvne though really shone as the stars, and making the most of the compressed basement atmosphere. Really just a whole room carried on the tide of sound. The contrast between the two vocalists (the female voice not being present for whatever reason) worked better than ever when you're just a foot away from them. And really giving it all.
If either of these accidentally gets to the stage where they don't play these kinds of venue I really will remember just how good this was.
Self discovery: proper bowties
Apr. 6th, 2023 06:16 pmI've always hated ties. They're just rubbish, and thankfully.. I've pretty much managed to limit the occasions I have to wear them on. Weddings, funerals.
On some of these occasions I've resorted to an alternative: the clip on bowtie. While better than a regular tie.. These are also a bit naff, and just look wrong.
Next month we're going on a cruise to Norway. Included are a few formal nights, and despite both of our usual instincts being to avoid this Kr0n and myself have decided to go to at least one of these.
To this end I've bought myself an (extremely cheap) real bowtie, to see if I could teach myself to tie it. And that was actually not too hard. Most importantly it's the first piece of neckwear I've ever felt comfortable in.
So.. REDACTED years in, achievement unlocked.. I now know I'm a bowtie person.
On some of these occasions I've resorted to an alternative: the clip on bowtie. While better than a regular tie.. These are also a bit naff, and just look wrong.
Next month we're going on a cruise to Norway. Included are a few formal nights, and despite both of our usual instincts being to avoid this Kr0n and myself have decided to go to at least one of these.
To this end I've bought myself an (extremely cheap) real bowtie, to see if I could teach myself to tie it. And that was actually not too hard. Most importantly it's the first piece of neckwear I've ever felt comfortable in.
So.. REDACTED years in, achievement unlocked.. I now know I'm a bowtie person.
Not been good at journaling recently so some general lif update:
Scales ran out of battery before Christmas, and the battery is awkward to change. Skip to the end: Have got fatter.
Related, have started to get back into a (swimming pool) swimming habit. Better for exercise than reservoir swimming, but not such a good brain benefit. Still feels good. I think the dog walking was doing me more good than I realised.
Been a bit down in the mood stakes. I guess a lot of this is post-dog related. Still we've fixed an ACTUAL HOLIDAY for April (Norway), and this is the magical gateway to being allowed to think about dogs again.
Double Bass playing is literally zero. :(
Breadmaking similarly not in a good place.
Related: still very very very addicted to Dwarf Fortress.
Kr0n has me hooked to watching Happy Valley, which I have a love/hate relationship with watching. I guess like much of it's fanbase.
Scales ran out of battery before Christmas, and the battery is awkward to change. Skip to the end: Have got fatter.
Related, have started to get back into a (swimming pool) swimming habit. Better for exercise than reservoir swimming, but not such a good brain benefit. Still feels good. I think the dog walking was doing me more good than I realised.
Been a bit down in the mood stakes. I guess a lot of this is post-dog related. Still we've fixed an ACTUAL HOLIDAY for April (Norway), and this is the magical gateway to being allowed to think about dogs again.
Double Bass playing is literally zero. :(
Breadmaking similarly not in a good place.
Related: still very very very addicted to Dwarf Fortress.
Kr0n has me hooked to watching Happy Valley, which I have a love/hate relationship with watching. I guess like much of it's fanbase.
[dwarf fortress] diary #3
Dec. 24th, 2022 09:46 amI finally have a stable burgeoning population! And everyone's eating and drinking.. The water is under control.
I know, I know, it's going to end horribly.
I *do* have a possessed child who's manically made a yak bone coffin whilst under the influence.. But I'm sure that's fiiiiine.
I know, I know, it's going to end horribly.
I *do* have a possessed child who's manically made a yak bone coffin whilst under the influence.. But I'm sure that's fiiiiine.
