A filk community

Happy Mother's Day to those in a position to celebrate it. I'll be over here with the widowers and orphans. Meanwhile I'm getting depressed over how little I've gotten done recently. (Which, depending on how one counts, may include much of the last decade.)

On the other hand, I'm not actually in bad shape physically, considering. Walks six days out of seven. And I got some web work done, on naomi-rivkis.com and hyperspace-express.com/, specifically on the .../Books pages, because there's enough information about N's next book, Paleomythic to have gotten started on it. So I've been more productive than usual, which of course isn't saying much.

If you want a taste of what Paleomythic is like, N has submitted a couple of stories in the same universe (the Pantheon of Worlds series) to a contest on Reedsy.com.

In other good news, I now have a charger for Scarlett, and an update cable for Romann. I suspect that the former may not be able to deliver enough power, and the latter needs a Win$ computer to run the software despite the fact that the dongle is supported -- with free software -- on Mac and Linux.

On the gripping hand, my (gripping?) hands are in somewhat sorry shape -- I'm suffering from trigger fingers again. Working on it, with topical diclofenac gel, paracetamol (at my GP's insistance), and sometimes compression gloves (which don't seem very effective). It is not at the point where I can't type, play guitar, or put on my compression socks, and hopefully will get away from that point rather than to it. But it's worrisome and annoying.

Linkies: BBC: 100 years of Sir David Attenborough (whose 100th birthday was Friday). Life and Death of a Planetary System - Intro - NASA Science nice series, with short videos. Some random math links under Sunday,

( Notes & links, as usual )

Not quite as unproductive as my weeks usually are, and there were some fascinating rabbit-holes to go down (I'll get to some of those later). And, yeah, a lot of good household-related things too. But not quite enough walking, and not nearly enough work (which includes music practice and writing). But some. But between stress around tax time, my ongoing health problems, and what's going on in the world, it's hard for me to be optimistic and hopeful, rather than pessimistic and depressed. So there was that.

With m and N returning from the US on Thursday, G's birthday (observed) on Saturday, getting (folding scooter)Lizzy back on Saturday, and N's next book nearing completion, there was a lot of great conversation and a goodly amount of sushi and other tasty stuff. I have some reviews to write -- hopefully overcoming my writer's block enough to do so. Here's a teaser.

Lizzy. When we got Lizzy back -- over a month ago -- from getting her flat tire repaired, she refused to start, displaying an error code (E8) on her dashboard. The manual does not have a table of error codes -- it says to call the dealer. They didn't know either. So we had them pick her up for repair. That was March 11. They called the factory. Several times, apparently. Finally I got the email saying she was ready to be returned, and that the error had to do with the freewheel lever not being engaged. WTF? Why was that not in the manual??!

Book. I recently read a near-final draft of N's new book, and yesterday I confirmed with her that I can say a little about it in public. It's called Paleomythic, and it's the first book in a trilogy. It is, in fact, a collection of myths -- stories about the history of Earth. As narrated, with close to scientific accuracy, by the gods themselves: the planets, continents, and seas that who were there and made it all happen. The framing story is narrated by Luna. It's not often that a book makes me cry tears of joy. This one did.

I note in passing that N's first book, The World As it Ought To Be, is widely available, and can be found through her website.

Health. The latest problem is Trigger finger, which I have been treating with diclofenac topical gel and, now, compression gloves. Because I need to use my fingers to pull on my compression socks. I'm also having pain -- probably muscle spasms -- on my left side, which is the side I sleep on. With the arm that Ticia likes to lie on.

Linkies! From last Sunday: Giant octopuses may have ruled the oceans 100 million years ago and Bruce Springsteen’s Chimes of Freedom. From Wednesday, Scientists reverse brain aging, with a nasal spray (nice if it works out, though I doubt it will be released soon enough to help me), and The Angine de Poitrine Argument for UBI. And from Friday, Scientists Finally Solved One of Water’s Biggest Mysteries and The Chord That Ended Classical Music - YouTube

( Notes & links, as usual )

Today I am thankful for...

• Having the good sense to recognize that I probably shouldn't have a second cup of coffee today. (We'll see later whether it was a mistake.)
• Cat fud, snacks, and other staples that come in boxes that can be hot-glued together to make storage compartments for small objects. Also hot-melt glue, because I'm too lazy to use white glue and clamp things properly.
• Cats. Special thanks for Ticia-snuggles, and Bronx learning to be somewhat more gentle. Now if only he would learn to sit on my lap instead of my keyboard.
• Our Dutch bookkeeper and our US financial advisors.
• Spreadable blue cheese and good whole-grain bread.

NO thanks for getting old, with its associated ailments and disabilities. I think Ticia (who turns 20 sometime this year) would agree with me.