View from an Alternate Dementia

Experiments in social networking

2009-11-06T11:35:00.002-05:00

Good news for readers who like my designs - Tor Rhuann now has a Facebook page! Check it out over at
http://www.facebook.com/TorRhuannDesigns

There *will* be a 2009 ornament - fear not the quiet that has been Tor so far this year. I also have some other design ideas in the works.

Since I quit WoW back in July, I've gotten a lot of stitching done. And crochet as well - the "63-squares" afghan is now up to 104 squares of 121!

Back to basics...

2009-10-16T21:14:00.005-04:00

I admit, I'm not the world's best housekeeper. I'm probably somewhere between mediocre and adequate. I'm fairly good at keeping up with the essentials like laundry and general decluttering, but I can't remember the last time I scrubbed my bathrooms.

Now, probably a large part of that is inertia. I'd really rather spend what free time I have doing things worthy of such - I doubt I'll be lying on my deathbed wishing I'd spent more time cleaning. But another part is that after a while, the chemical smells get to me. And if they get to *me*, they're worse on my family.

Quite by accident a few weeks ago, I stumbled on a site that had various 'homemade' cleaning solution recipes, using very basic, inexpensive pantry items. Poking further, I found other sites as well, with similar recipes.

It all sounded intriguing. Frugal, non-chemical...could be a good thing. So I've started out trying a few of them.

This is my second week test-driving a laundry solution - I have a bottle of liquid castile soap (short squirt per load) and a dry-powder mix of baking soda, oxi-clean, and borax (1/4 c per load). I'm testing on my whites, since they're often more soiled (kid socks - nuff said) and they'd be more obvious about showing up any issues. So far so good, the whites even seem a little brighter perhaps. And it's certainly gotten blood out of the whites without any real pretreatment. I'm also starting to try the vinegar/water (1:1) solution for basic cleanup.

So we'll see how this little experiment goes. I think I want to try to use up all the remaining commercial products by the end of the calendar year, and try using just homemade solutions for a while after that and see how it goes. Have any of my readers ever tried any of these? What are your thoughts?

Vinegar + baking soda - not just for volcanoes anymore!

And now for my next trick...

2009-09-22T09:06:00.002-04:00

A few weeks ago, my voice teacher* asked if I thought I might be able to reproduce a baby sampler that she'd received when her daughter was a baby, so that she'd have a gift for her new grandson's upcoming baptism. I took a look at the piece, probably 30 years old, maybe stamped cross-stitch, and thought I would give it a try.

So I took a picture with my cellphone camera (amazing resolution on those things nowadays!)

I charted it out and made a few minor tweaks. Most notably, brightening up a few of the colors, but also converting most of the satin-stitch ribbons to cross-stitch.

Just over a week after I first put needle to fabric:

I used 25-ct cream lugana, so it's larger than the stitch count would normally be, but still a little smaller than the original. It stitched up pretty quickly, especially since it's football season and I wasn't timing my hours on this.

I pinned it last night and will lace it tonight, and will be able to get it to my teacher before she leaves town for her grandson's baptism this weekend.

I'm pretty happy with the reproduction, and it was fun working with all the bold colors that I'd likely never use otherwise.

I still have my chart in PatternMaker for it, but I don't know anything about the original designer, so I'm reluctant to put it up over on Tor Rhuann. If you do recognize it, please drop me a line!

* Yes, voice teacher. Been taking lessons about a year and a half. Starting to develop into an adequate mezzo, though I doubt I'll be competent enough to be doing solos with any regularity. And you won't see me at the Met or on American Idol.

Why Micro$oft sucks...

2009-09-15T17:06:00.002-04:00

Well, there are many reasons, too numerous to list here.

So I will simply present Reason N+1. I had to upgrade from Office 2003 to Office 2007 for work. I've had it on my machine for maybe 20 minutes, and already I hate it.

Why?

Note the menu area. Note the huge clunky menu boxes.

I can't find a way to make them go away, other than an add-on I could get from Microsoft to revert to "Classic" toolbars. For $16.

So basically, huge bulky toolbox area with no way to revert to a more streamlined classic feel without paying more $$.

Microsoft FTL.

Edit, 9/18: Just found out I can make the bulky menu (aka "menu ribbon") go away - right-click on one of the ribbon tabs and select "Minimize This Ribbon". Much better! Thank you to those who pointed this out to me.

Three more reasons I love my framer!

2009-08-07T18:41:00.003-04:00

I got three pieces back from my framer today, adding to the number of reasons I think she is the best framer ever.

First up is TW Fortunate Traveler. Some may remember that I finished this one on New Years Day...2008. Finally got the dragon on his merry way, and when he came back:

(Click for larger picture)
The detail inset below was an unexpected but beautiful touch, and I think it adds so much to this piece:

(Click for larger picture)

Next up was JN Amethyst Snowflake, which was 2009's New Years Day finish:

(Click for larger picture)

The last thing I had was to take several of my smalls and my logo for Tor Rhuann Designs and ask what she could do with them. Here is the result:

(Click for larger picture)

A little closer pic of the logo area:

(Click for larger picture)

I am still in awe...

What I've been up to..

2009-08-04T10:30:00.002-04:00

I'm taking a hiatus from World of Warcraft - not sure how long, at least a month, could be permanently.

In the meantime, I've actually been doing some stitching, and in the past week I've almost doubled my progress on Mirabilia's _Madonna of the Garden_. With a few color conversions. Here she is at 50 hours.

I hadn't touched her in nearly 2 years, so it's good to get back to it.

I'm a noob...

2009-07-23T19:53:00.001-04:00

...at CSS. I probably should have put 'learn CSS' on my 101List.

Anyway, I've been playing around with getting past and present travel journals online in a single format. My latest attempt is at http://www.clioratha.net/travel/UK2009blog.html.

Let me know what you think....

Abbey road (UK 2009, part 8/8)

2009-07-21T01:11:00.001-04:00

London, Gatwick airport, 5 July 2009
Today we checked out of our hotel in Hastings, to stay at an airport hotel since we have an early flight tomorrow.

On the way to London, we stopped at Bayham Abbey, a small but picturesque ruin along the Kent/Sussex border. There's a somewhat ancient beech tree overgrowing some of the ruins, which gives a bit of an idea of just how long it had been that way. An 18th century house also stands on the grounds, with two rooms accessible to visitors that talked about the Premonstratensians, the monastic order whose abbey it was.

After spending an hour or so exploring on a pleasant sunny day, we continued on toward Gatwick, opting to take the scenic route (in this case, the A264) instead of heading all the way up the A21 to the London ring road and back down. As it turns out, this was a wise move on multiple counts - an accident had traffic stalled for hours on the M25 clockwise, which is the way we would have gone.

The downside of the scenic route is that DD is prone to carsickness, and even with the ginger beer that we'd been using to stave that off the past few days, we needed to stop again. This time, for lunch at a pub in Crawley called The Duke's Head. The food was quite good, and they offered a rather nice cider (Aspall) that was new to me.

Back on the road, we arrived safely at Gatwick and are preparing for tomorrow's flight home.

---------------
That concludes my journal - hope you enjoyed it! More pictures can be found at http://www.clioratha.net/galleries.

Hawks and arrows (UK 2009, part 7/8)

2009-07-19T15:49:00.002-04:00

Hastings, 4 July 2009
Today we drove up to Battle Abbey, and spent most of the day there. The original abbey was built on the site of the Battle of Hastings, with the high altar on the place where Harold Godwinson was killed. Like most other abbeys in England, it underwent several renovations before falling into ruin after the Dissolution. One of its main buildings is now a private school, though, and seemed in good repair from the outside. The main feature of the grounds is, of course, the battlefield itself. Now it's a peaceful place for a pleasant walk, with wild roses and other flora. Quite different than over 900 years ago.

There were two activities being held at the Abbey today which held our interest.

The first was a 'have-a-go' archery session, teaching people a quick basic archery lesson and letting them fire a set of blunted arrows. We all had a turn at it, and DD had three turns over the course of the day, getting a bullseye and several close ones. DH got two through himself, and alas, I was the worst archer of the three. It was fun, though, and DD wishes to explore archery more at home.

The other activity, which was quite fascinating, was a series of falconry sessions by Raphael Falconry. We learned about the history of falconry, especially around the Norman Conquest, and over the course of the day we saw a variety of different birds of prey - Harris hawks, peregrines, lanners, kestrels, and even an owl. During one of the demonstrations, DD was selected to be a "stunt partridge" by pulling the lure for a Harris hawk.

It was really rather informative, learning how the different birds were used in falconry, how they attacked their prey, what their flight styles are. It was very different from any other bird of prey exhibit I'd ever seen.

After the last falconry session, we came back to our room, then went to Mass at nearby Holy Redeemer since we're headed back to London tomorrow.

Canterbury: The Blogger's Tale (UK 2009, part 6/8)

2009-07-18T18:24:00.001-04:00

Hastings, 3 July 2009
We got a somewhat early start today and drove up to Canterbury. Our first stop was St. Augustine's Abbey. Or rather, the ruins thereof. The original monastery dates back to the 7th century (when St. Augustine of Canterbury founded it) but very little is left besides the tombs of several of the archbishops and a few Saxon kings. The Normans built a larger church there, and improvements were made until Henry VIII dissolved that one too, built a palace with some of the stone and carted off much of the rest. Seems to be a common theme. Like so many other places, I wonder what it must have been like back in its prime.

After seeing the vestiges of what once was, we went to Canterbury Cathedral. For a cathedral it's a bit small, but still very richly decorated. There is a small shrine set up to commemorate where Thomas Becket was martyred, and a lit candle at the place where the shrine used to be - back when Canterbury was a famous place of pilgrimage and before Henry VIII destroyed the shrine (and Becket's bones). The marble floor has worn down in places from the many people that have visited over time, including a noticeable groove in the floor near Becket's old shrine.

In the undercroft were several small chapels, including one with the remnants of medieval frescoes (St. Gabriel's chapel, I think).

After a takeaway lunch, we drove to Dover. We stopped and walked along the White Cliffs for a short while, and looked out over the harbor (and a busy harbor it is!) We then went to Dover Castle. Unfortunately the keep itself was closed, and since we weren't much interested in WWII uses of Dover, we just looked around the outside, then left.

DD had really been looking forward to Dover, and when we discovered two other castles in the area, she cheered up. The first was Walmer Castle, which was a Tudor fortress that had been heavily renovated over the years, so much so that we didn't stay long.

The other was Deal Castle. This was also Tudor, and it turns out that it was one of three castles (with Walmer and one other) built by Henry VIII to defend the coast after he ticked off Charles V (who was Henry's first wife's nephew). This castle was mostly as originally designed, and was purely defensive with artillery in mind. It was quite impressive, though, with the engineering and strategy involved. I enjoyed Deal more than I thought I might, though I do have to wonder how much of the stone was pilfered from monasteries.

We took the scenic route back to Hastings, and I think we saw all of the original Cinque Ports except Sandwich.

Coasting along (UK 2009, part 5/8)

2009-07-17T11:58:00.001-04:00

Hastings, 2 July 2009
After having spent much of the week in Hastings, we finally decided to visit the castle. The castle ruins are at the top of a cliff overlooking the city. The city, cliff, and castle are not what they were when William the Conqueror had it built - severe storms in the late 13th century reshaped much of England's southeast coastline. these storms eroded the cliff, causing cliff and part of the castle to collapse. so for once, I can't blame Cromwell for its disrepair - Mother Nature beat him to the punch. There was a church buildings still functional until the 16th century, but we have Henry VIII to thank/blame for its disrepair.

What was left was nice to see. We watched a short video about the history of the castle, and the view from the cliff is quite impressive. There was also a dungeon (or perhaps a storage area). It was a little damp, and very cold. Almost perfect for a wine cellar, but would have been a miserable place to be imprisoned.

After a late lunch, we drove to Pevensey Castle. Like Hastings, Pevensey was once on the coast, but changing geography has put it about a mile or so inland. There was intiially a Roman fortification at the castle site, then a Norman keep built up around that. There were even modern renovations - pillboxes and other changes made during WWII to support and defend troops stationed there. The outer Roman wall around the castle grounds in still standing, and much of it still in somewhat decent shape.

Inside the castle itself, we took the audio guided tour, which I found to actually be pretty interesting. I'd never done one of those before.

The dungeon area was dark, damp, and chilly, despite the hot temperatures. One of the other towers we technically couldn't go into the basement because it had flooded. Quite a shame - we took a peek, and the room seemed very well preserved. Except for the water, anyway. There were pigeons on nests there, and they didn't mind the water so much.

After Pevensey, we headed back to the hotel. Along the way we passed two Norman-era churches in the Pevensey area - St. Nicolas, and St. Mary the Virgin. If there had been parking around, we would have visited St. Mary's - it looked quite lovely from the outside.

A Sussex-ful outing (UK 2009, part 4/8)

2009-07-16T09:55:00.006-04:00

Hastings, 1 July 2009
On the way to Bodiam Castle this afternoon, we passed a handyman's truck with the logo "William the Concreter". It was one of those moments missed because I had no camera to hand at that moment, and an indicator of local humor. There is also a local barber shop called "Sweeney Todd's".

Bodiam Castle is fairly well preserved, despite Cromwell having gotten to it. It's a 14th century castle erected by a landed knight, and was built as both fortress and home. Most of the castles I've seen so far have been more heavily one or the other. Bodiam is pretty much the stereotypical medieval castle, complete with moat.

The outer walls are mostly intact, although the inside is in ruins - yet another curse upon Cromwell. There is a colony of bats in the main gatehouse, and we could hear them chittering even at midday. There were also several informative videos. Plate mail was a real pain to get on, which I knew, but I'd not previously gotten a good sense of just how big and timeconsuming a pain it was!

My favorite exhibit, though, was a couple on the green giving information and displays on medieval medicine and surgery. Having someone demonstrate how things were used was quite informative, and made me thankful for modern medicine!

After Bodiam, we drove to the Biddenden Vineyard and Ciderworks. We didn't try any of the wines this time, but all of their ciders were very good. They even had a "Special Reserve" cider aged in oak casks that had been used previously for sherry and whiskey. If you can imagine a cider as a port, you might be close.

We drove by Bayham Abbey but got there after closing, so we headed back to Hastings for dinner.

Dinner was at a Nepalese restaurant called Gurkha Chef. Very excellent food and wonderful service. I had never had Nepalese before, but this place made me wish that either we were staying longer or that we had such a place back home. I had Manang Khas, which is almost a sort of lamb curry - very tasty. DD had a Yogi Tarkari with prawns, which was very mild and a bit sweet. She actually ate the whole thing despite it being a largish portion, and she had not yet done that with any meal so far here. DH had a mixed grill, and all of the meats were delightfully seasoned. if you're ever anywhere near Hastings, you really must give them a try. I almost wish we could stay for their Sunday buffet, to sample more of their cuisine!

Life's a beach (UK 2009, part 3/8)

2009-07-15T08:43:00.002-04:00

Hastings 29 June 2009
We had a bit of a lazy morning while DH was at work, but this afternoon DD and I went down to the shore to spend time on the amusements there. We did a number of rides and games, then wandered down to the water. The beach is rocky, with stones and pebbles instead of sand. (I later learned this is called a shingle beach). The water was cold, but clear, and left only a very fine salt on our legs.

This evening we all went to Porters Wine Bar for dinner with some of DH's coworkers. They had good food, and the company was also quite pleasant.

West Hill, Hastings 30 June 2009
DD and I are having lunch on the patio of a cafe at the top of a hill overlooking Hastings. There is a bit of a seabreeze, but it is quite sunny and warm. It's actually a bit of a heatwave for here, with highs around 26C. The breeze makes it quite tolerable, though.

Before lunch we visited Smuggler's Adventure, an attraction built around old smuggler's caves in the hill overlooking the sea. it was interesting to learn about the area's long history of smuggling, and the hands-on exhibits made it engaging for children. One of the facts we learned is that during the late 1700s, smuggled tea could be sold for 400% profit, and still be cheaper than "legal" taxed tea.

Hastings, beach
After lunch we journeyed back to the beach area, and rode by miniature railway to the Blue Reef Aquarium. Compared to places such as SeaWorld it was small, but one could get a good view of many types of marine life. We also saw baby starfish and jellyfish, and several pairs of seahorses apparently making more seahorses. For a small aquarium it was well-organized with presented facts in an accessible fashion.

We took the mini-train back and are about to sit down to cream tea. I need to get out of the sun - only a redhead can go to England and get sunburnt!

Hastings
Dinner tonight was at another pub, Ye Olde Pump House. The food (and beer) were quite tasty - I had a lamb steak and a pint of Guinness (on draft, of course).

Having a vine time... (UK 2009 part 2/8)

2009-07-14T09:48:00.002-04:00

Hastings, 28 June 2009
After a full English breakfast, we drove down to downtown Hastings to attend Mass at St. Mary Star of the Sea. We were a couple of minutes late - parking proved to be a bit of a challenge.

St. Mary is a lovely little church, its sanctuary done in ornate gothic style, yet not overdone. In a way it seemed architecturally like a cathedral in miniature, with ornate wooden fixtures and stonework. The floor was not tile, though, but of a worn varnished wood, which gave it a warmer feel.

Outside, other buildings jam up against St. Marys, and against each other. This seems to be common in Europe, especially in cities and downtown areas. A small price to pay, though, for being able to leave much of the countryside undeveloped. And even in the cities, most houses have lovely gardens in their tiny front yards. Many gardens had roses in full bloom, and lavender was also very common.

After Mass, we wandered the coastline area, which was liberally populated with pubs, gift shops, and even casinos. In a way it looked a lot like other port/resort towns such as Atlantic City, except that you could also find fishing industry workers not far from the boardwalk-type area.

We had lunch at a place called the Hastings Arms. Besides my meal of Leicester sausages, I tried a Kentish ale - Shepherd Neame's Master Brew. It reminded me a bit of a cross between Smithwicks and Killians. I also had a Magner's cider, but one made solely from pear. It was lighter, sweeter, and more delicate than their apple cider, and was quite tasty.

In the afternoon we drove to a small vineyard called Carr-Taylor. We got a bit turned about trying to get there, especially on narrow country lanes, but it was certainly worth it. We had a wine tasting with the owner and saw some of the vines. Right now the grapes are only tiny flower buds. One of the wines is a "1066 Country" vintage, which the owner explained was made using some of his grapes along with grapes brought in by other local people who grow grapes but aren't large enough for their own winemaking equipment. I thought that was quite neat. They also had several nice fruit wines, including a ginger wine and a mead. Well worth the drive if you find yourself in East Sussex.

Takeoffs and takeaways (UK 2009, part 1/8)

2009-07-13T18:24:00.003-04:00

Hastings, 27 June 2009
As with any trip requiring a transatlantic flight, it has been along day. We had a very early flight leaving Melbourne, with a long layover in Atlanta.

During our layover we visited Zoo Atlanta, which was quite nice other than the 90 degree heat and humidity. The Zoo had an open aviary with a large flock of budgies that one could feed, and a giant panda exhibit.

We had a good early dinner at a seafood place called Six Feet Under. Their fish was good, and one of their sides was zucchini fries, which were quite tasty. There were also a large number of beers on draft, but I didn't get a chance to try any.

Our flight from Atlanta to Gatwick was mostly uneventful, although we took off an hour late because one of the flight attendants had a medical emergency as we were taxiing to the runway.

When we landed and got underway, we could appreciate the difference from Florida! It's in the 70s with a gentle breeze, and we enjoyed seeing all the trees and rolling hills on the way to Hastings. There were a number of fruit vendors in laybys along the motorways as well as fish'n'chips and other roadside cuisine.
Our hotel in Hastings is an 18th century home that has been converted into a hotel. I can see only by looking at the ceiling that the bathroom was a late addition to the room.

The hotel bar has both Guinness and Strongbow on draft, and I hope to avail myself of both during the trip.

We found a nice fish'n'chip shop for lunch - their cod special was tasty. Dinner, after quite a long post-flight nap, was at a takeaway place that had pizza and a variety of less-standard (by American thought) items such as lambchops. Chips are standard fast-food here as well, though.

Book 'em!

2009-07-08T16:54:00.003-04:00

Monday night we got back from a trip to the UK. Trip report will be forthcoming (so watch this space). While on travel, I read a few books, so just a few sentences about each:

Storm Front - Jim Butcher: The first book in the Dresden Files series. Harry Dresden is a wizard, consulted by the Chicago PD whenever there's something...unusual...in one of their cases. In this case, a double-homicide.
This book, the first of 11 (soon to be 12, I think), was a lot of fun to read. Good brain-candy, in a way. There was also a short-lived Sci-Fi Channel series based on the books, also called The Dresden Files. You can find the series up on YouTube. Well worth checking out, on both counts.

The Eyre Affair - Jasper Fforde: The first in the Thursday Next series. Set in an alternate England where literature is a big deal, temporal/spatial anomalies are common, and messing with classics (forging originals, faking works by well-known authors, etc) is a big deal, Thursday Next is a detective trying to figure out who is kidnapping major characters from classic novels.
This book was decent, and definitely had an infusion of puns and absurdities in it (think Shakespeare's _Richard III_ being performed in similar fashion to _Rocky Horror_ with audience participation), but for some reason it didn't really engage me. And I wanted it to. Not sure why. I don't begrudge the time reading it, but I don't know that I'd pick up the rest of the series.

Catherynne Valente's "Orphans Tales" duo: In the Night Garden and In the Cities of Coin and Spice": A young girl has been exiled to a palace garden for her strange mark - on her eyelids are tattooed multiple stories.
These two books, telling stories within a story, is very similar in fashion to the Arabian Nights, and many of the tales lead to other tales (so you sometimes have a story within a story within a story within...well, you get the picture). The prose was beautiful, the tales wove together well, and I found it very enjoyable. Definitely worth reading for lovers of fantastic tales. (This was also #3 completed on my 101List :)

Inkheart - Cornelia Funke: First book in the Inkheart trilogy. A young girl's father has the unusual ability to read aloud such that he can bring characters to life. Literally. When her father is kidnapped by one villainous character he's read into being, the quest begins to rescue him and stop the villain.
One of the more recent entries into epic children's fiction, I read this in its entirety during the long layover in Atlanta, and enjoyed it. It's not tremendously high fantasy, but it was a fun read. I can also definitely relate to the book-obsession displayed by several characters in the book. This book has also been made into a movie, apparently, but I've not yet seen it.

So, dear readers - what is on *your* summer reading list?

Cool link...

2009-06-18T16:14:00.002-04:00

Stumbled upon this today, a gentleman playing a medley of 80's hits....ragtime.
Some people are rather talented!

See more funny videos and TBT Videos at Today's Big Thing.

Just too cool not to link. Enjoy.

It's that time again....

2009-06-01T11:34:00.005-04:00

Hurricane season kicks off today. Whee. Such is life, though, living in Florida.

It's been nearly a month since I posted last - as I get older, I find time slips away from me more and more.

So, lucky readers, instead of a cohesive post,you get...the dreaded bullet list! (*cower*)

Saw the new Star Trek movie. It was enjoyable, more so than I was expecting. DD has now gone nuts over Spock. So I did what any responsible parent would - pointed her at the Star Trek original series playlist over on YouTube!

Also saw the new Pixar movie Up. I had high hopes, and Pixar came through once again. This was a cute, touching movie, and I admit I cried a bit at points. And Pixar's animation standards continue to be very high.

Am currently reading the latest Sharon Kay Penman book, The Devil's Brood. Historical fiction about Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine, and their children. If you've ever seen the movie The Lion in Winter, you'll be familiar with the main characters, but don't be surprised if the characterizations don't completely match up with the movie. Penman does do her homework research-wise, though, and she's very solid. I highly recommend her if you like historical fiction.

DD is *ten* now. Where has the time gone?? She wanted to go to Margaritaville (the Jimmy Buffett-themed restaurant) for her birthday so we took her and her best friend out to Orlando. A good time was had by all.

Addendum (6/1, 18:40): Made homemade pulled pork from a Good Eats episode. Time-intensive but oh so worth it.

That's all for now!

Fast finish!

2009-05-02T18:42:00.002-04:00

Well, day 2 into my new 101List, and I already have a completion.

#100: Get 45mpg on a tank of fuel.

We drove up to Jacksonville to take DD to a music competition, and spend some time with DsS and his GF. It was a fun trip.

We refueled when we got back to town. 400 miles on the trip....8.69 gallons. For a wonderful 46.0 mpg.

I love my hybrid.

Yes, I'm a list person...how'd you guess?

2009-04-30T13:06:00.003-04:00

My "101 Things in 1001 Days" list expired last week. Of the 101 things on the list, I managed to accomplish 38 of them. Of other lists I've seen folks do, 35-40 seems to be typical for completion, so that's not so bad.

It could be argued that I'm a glutton for punishment, but I made another list. Many of the tasks I didn't complete last round I have rolled over to this one. There are also a few tasks that I included that I did complete last round, but that it never hurts to do on a regular basis (for example, #5 - culling my wardrobe).

So...we'll see how this round goes!

Another culture rant...

2009-04-21T19:10:00.005-04:00

My apologies, but I feel the need once again to rant about the media's distorted perceptions of beauty.

Surfing the various news websites, I saw a photo essay headline that read "Full Figured Fatales". Huh, maybe people are realizing that maybe skinny isn't necessarily beautiful....

I couldn't have been more wrong in my assumptions. Featured in this photo essay....Kim Kardashian and Brooke Hogan.

ExCUSE me?? "Full figured" my @$$. Queen Latifah is full figured. Sarah Ferguson is full figured.

Talentless size 2 bimbos who wouldn't even be noteworthy except for famous relatives or being stupid enough to have themselves taped doing the nasty are *not* "full figured". And having plastic accessories in one's frontal area does not make one 'full figured' either.

Perhaps fortunately, in a few years people stumbling across this entry will likely say of them "who were they, anyway, and why did people care?".

And why do I care, even?

Because I have a 10yo daughter who thinks she's fat because the whole damned culture is being bombarded by this insane and warped perception of what constitutes "beauty". She deserves better than that.

Your daughters deserve better than that.

On the other hand...
If you need a palate-cleanser, check out this YouTube clip of Susan Boyle on Britain's Got Talent. At the beginning, the audience has obviously discounted her based on looks....until they hear her sing.

Just go have a listen. It'll be worth it, I promise.

Short fiction time!

2009-04-17T22:39:00.004-04:00

Once in a great while I get the urge to write, by some internal inspiration. Or occasionally external impetus.

The following short story is more a product of the latter. One of the WoW blogs I read, Big Bear Butt, hosted a creative writing contest. The prize, a copy of Arthas: Rise of the Lich King by Christie Golden.

I've decided to post my submission here as well, though if you're not interested in Warcraft lore, you may just decide to skip this entry...
========================================================
ILL WIND
by Clioratha of Elune
--------
Dawn broke, an explosion of color in the sky. It had been a long night, and I welcomed the chance to rest for the day. Preferably somewhere away from the smoke and carnage of the night's work. Wandering into the woods, upwind of the horror, I selected a sturdy tree, climbed up and made myself comfortable. Nyx followed with her usual feline grace, sprawling herself out on a sun-dappled branch near me.

"Hedonist", I murmured with a playful pat to her side. Nyx purred happily, closing her eyes to enjoy the morning.

I closed mine as well, feeling the gentle caress of the breeze on my skin, listening to the whisper of the leaves, the earthy scent of the woods reminding me of home... My mind began to wander, back to more peaceful times. My people are immortal, and if we could not selectively shelve unpleasant memories for a time, we would all surely go mad.

My reverie was interrupted by voices. Human, by the language. And a heated discussion, at that.

"This prophet is right - we should leave for the west." Female. The voice of one accustomed to power and her own will.

"By the Light, Jaina! I cannot just leave my people!". Male. Deep, for a human. Anger. Frustration.

My rest thus disturbed, I had no choice but to overhear. Their words might be alien, but the tone was one of dispute, the voice of the female becoming tinged with desperation, the male's frustration rising in answer.

"I go, Arthas. With *or* without you.". A tone of finality in the female's voice, footsteps rustling the fallen leaves in a fading echo. Good, perhaps now I could return to my repose.

*SLAM*. My perch shivered with the force of a sudden blow, and I looked down to find a human male, clad in the heavy plates of metal that they so favor, clenched fist pressed against the trunk of my tree. His head bowed, he seemed to be mumbling to himself, and I recognized the male voice I had heard earlier.

I shifted to keep this human in view, and Nyx yowled in surprise. Turning to apologize for having pinched her tail, I didn't notice that I had attracted attention of my own. Turning back to the human, I found eyes the color of the morning sky looking up at me.

"So, elf...since everyone else seems keen to offer me advice, you may as well take your turn." Bitter, frustrated.

I may as well, I thought, since it appears I will get no rest otherwise. Sighing inwardly, I leapt down. Nyx followed, overturning my quiver and spilling arrows in a spray around the base of the tree. Heedless of her mess, she stood beside me, butting her head against my hip. Idly I scratched behind her ears, while meeting the human's gaze.

His eyes flickered but briefly on the strewn arrows. "You were there last night?"

I nodded, recalling the wave of fearless creatures that burst suddenly upon the human settlement they called Hart's Glen.

"Then you understand why I cannot leave my people." He continued to speak, seeming more to address himself than me. I could not follow his every word - the human language is still new to me - but it seemed that he spoke of a disease, or a curse, that turned living people into mindless dead. And that this disease was now in the very food people ate.

Food that was then delivered to these human towns...

With a shock, some of the strangeness began to make sense. The creatures last night were not fearless, but mindless. Dead. My stomach roiled with the memory of the carrion-stench that surrounded them. How had I not realized sooner?

Spread in the food, not just the humans were susceptible. I had seen a hound, rabid and ravaged by mange, wandering along the road. I had granted the poor beast a quick and merciful death...but perhaps it was not mange, but the decay of death? What fiend would so disrupt the balance of nature, forcing even beasts into this corruption of neither life nor death?

"Do you know who makes this....un-life?", I asked, searching for a suitable word. Some concepts should never exist to need words.

"Mal'Ganis", he spat, as if the name alone had a foul taste.

"This must be stopped." How far would this perversion spread, if left unchecked?

A thin smile touched his lips. His eyes, I realized, were not the color of morning...but of ice.

"By the Light, I will stop him. I will avenge those who have fallen!". He drew his sword, raising it in challenge to the very sky. The morning rays reflected off the blade, and I blinked at the brightness.

"I will lose *no more* of my people to be his slaves in undeath!" And as abruptly as he had arrived, he slammed his sword back into its scabbard, spun on his heel and strode off.

I watched him go, this strange, driven human with the golden hair and heart of fire.

"Elune light your path", I whispered to his departing back, hoping that he could indeed stop this blight of un-life that had entered the world.
===============================================================

I didn't win, but I had fun writing. Good to let the muse out once in a while.

Five years...

2009-04-01T18:57:00.002-04:00

No fooling, today is the 5th blogiversary of Alternate Dementia!

Certainly my writing frequency has tapered off since that first post, and my readership has doubtless changed. Still, it's been a fun ride so far.

Today is also, of course, April Fool's Day, and DD managed to pull one over on me this evening. On the drive home, she told me she needed a particular dish washed, and somehow over the course of the conversation I'd convinced myself she must have put a fake roach in the cup or something, so I had the dish in question fully expecting a bug of some sort.

No bug in the dish, so then I thought she might have put something up under the faucet, and was expecting that then I turned on the water...

....and got my shirt soaked! She'd taped down the handle on the spray-hose that many kitchen sinks come with, and had focused it to spray right where I'd be standing! We had a good laugh at that....and another one when DH also got a shirt-full when he came to see what we were laughing about.

As for me, I don't have a true trick, but more of a variation on things...

Tonight's dinner is.....albino chili!

Albino Chili
2 lb ground poultry (I'm using 1 lb turkey and 1 lb chicken tonight)
5 cans of white beans (tonight: navy, chickpea, great northern, white kidney)
1 packet leek soup mix
2 cans cream of chicken soup
green chile powder (I also have jalapeno seasoning somewhere but can't find it...)

Brown the meat, drain. Add the chile powder and leek soup mix until meat is seasoned, then add the beans and cream of chicken soup. Let simmer for 20 minutes or however long you like your chili. Heat can be increased by adding more green chile powder or green chiles or jalapenos as desired.

Looks innocuous, but with much room for trickery.

If a picture is worth 1000 words...

2009-03-19T13:17:00.004-04:00

...many pictures must speak volumes!

I finally got fed up with KodakGallery's increasing controls on album sharing - I can no longer direct-link to my gallery, but have to basically make a slideshow and 'share' it.

Enough of that - I've started moving my pictures off to my own webspace (may as well use it, right?). It is still very much a work in progress, and very few of the pictures are actually labelled, but they are now viewable at:
http://www.clioratha.net/galleries

I think I should have labelling/organizing them on my next 101List (I have about a month left on my current one). I also hope to put the travelogs online and link them in with the relvant galleries. In the meantime, enjoy!

Under pressure on St. Pat's Day

2009-03-17T18:27:00.001-04:00

Not me, my corned beef! Our local Irish place is always insanely packed on St. Patrick's Day, so I'm making my own corned beef and cabbage.

Right now I have a corned beef brisket, some seasonings, and a bottle of Smithwicks in my pressure cooker, which is merrily steaming away. After about an hour, I'll pop the lid, throw in the cabbage and carrots (I was a dork and forgot potatoes), and put it on for another 5-10 minutes. We'll see how it turns out - last time I made corned beef in the pressure cooker it turned out fairly well, so I am optimistic about the results.

It's certainly smelling quite nice at the moment!

In any case, there's a Guinness with my name on it in the fridge, so life will be good later no matter how it turns out.

Slainte!