First-Person Narrator

I didn't make any resolutions for the new year, mostly because I never remember that that is a Thing that one might wish to do, but I have one as of today! It is this: I resolve to get through at least half of my freakishly huge TBR shelf, which includes not only multiple actual physical shelves but also a ton of space on my e-reader.

I'd say get through all of it, but I want to go with a goal that is, y'know, achievable. All would be nice, though! To that end, my supporting resolution is to not buy any new books for... Um... Let's say three months?

Oh god, I suddenly have such a strong book-buying urge. Stay strong, Robyn!

karenhealey came for a quick visit this week, and we did many things. One of them was to go to the Rooster Cogburn Ostrich Ranch, which is probably worth visiting if you're ever near it. It was hella hot while we were there, and the donkeys and ostriches were all sluggish, but many of the fallow deer came right up to the fence and stuck their heads out as far as they could go to lick little pellets up off our palms, and the goats were downright aggressive in their eagerness to interact. One of them bit another to get access to a particular hole in the wall (the goat wall, omg. I can't even describe it. It's an amazing idea) and then stole my cup of pellets. I'm pretty sure it was the same white goat as in the picture on this page, and I would not get anywhere near as close to it as that woman is. The lorikeets were pretty, but also too hot to be very playful. A couple did come sit on my hand to drink, though.

Hooray for odd roadside attractions!

I saw the new Pirates movie with Mom and Jimmy today. I was expecting to actively dislike it, so I was pleasantly surprised that parts of it were quite fun/interesting/entertaining, and the rest was not generally as irritating as I had feared.

Then we came home, and I took a nap, during which I had an intense, narrative dream. I don't remember what it was about, but I do remember that it was all in rhyming couplets. Jimmy woke me up before the end of the story, and I demanded "twenty more minutes," because I needed to know what was going to happen next. I should have told him what it was about at the time, in hindsight. Alas.

Then he played Mass Effect 2 for me (I just can't do the fighting. At all. I can barely wander around the Normandy without slamming into bulkheads - taking cover is never going to happen) while I gave vague commands and ate cornbread for dinner. I never finished it when it first came out - Mass Effect 2, I mean, not the cornbread - not from lack of interest, but because my skillz are so unleet, and I had too much going on at the time to work out how Jimmy and I could coordinate playing time together. So I'm glad we're doing it now, because while I got spoiled on enough plot and watched enough of his playthrough and videos online and all to know the shape of things, that's no substitute for playing all the way through with my very own Shepard.

So I've been having the insomnia pretty bad, as you may have heard. Which means I haven't been wearing my grind guard for as many hours at a time, because it starts to feel uncomfortable after an hour or so when I'm awake. But I think I must be clenching my jaw a lot even though I'm not sleeping much because OMG it hurts to open my mouth.

I did actually manage to fall asleep at night time and stay asleep for several hours last night, though! Maybe I can do it again...?

I have an irrational fear that someday I will be scratching an itch in my bellybutton, and I'll poke through into my, y'know, innards.

I know this is very unlikely! Very, very unlikely. But it's just one of those things that continues to make me nervous.

This entry brought to you by insomnia and dry skin!

I think it's time for some further Adventures in Sewing. I've been wanting to try my hand at shirts of some kind for a while, because I would, y'know, like to have more shirts. Especially if they fit me and look nice.

So! I think this pattern is within my skillset and is cute and etc., but I have a concern. It is that back when I was small of chest, I found shelf bras uncomfortable and essentially useless, because I didn't need a bra at all, so I have long been in the habit of not buying anything with built-in support. And now that I am somewhat larger in that area, I have no idea if a shelf bra inside a top will actually be worth anything, support-wise, and haven't worn one in way too long to guess. Anyone in the C-D cup range want to weigh in on this?

Hey guys, wanna watch Firefly together? I'm doing a thing at Hathor to discuss an episode every week. Come over and chat about the pilot with me: link!

So, I wrote a thing about gaming and fiction franchises. It is at Strange Horizons, here. Wooo!

So how many of y'all played and/or read some of the things I mention?

So I was using a craft knife the other day, and then I needed both hands free, so I tucked it into the pocket of my sweatshirt. And didn't take it out again. And then washed the sweatshirt, without checking the pockets, because I am so awesome.

I found both of the plastic parts that held the blade, and the little rubberized bit that pushed it in and out. But not the blade itself, despite a lot of shaking and careful pocket-rifling. Gahhh.

I am not looking forward to the day I finally find it whilst putting on a shirt or something.

Heeeey guys, what's up? I've been busy, kind of. Reading, writing, teaching martial arts, etc. Also, cutting my thumb open with my super-sharp carving knife - good going, me!

HOWEVER, before I managed to render my left hand essentially useless for about a day (I can type now, though! As long as I remember to only hit the space bar with my right thumb! Wheee!), I did some crafty stuff that I am quite pleased with. New OOAK dolls, w00t! I've put the finished ones up in my Etsy shop, so click over there for pretty pictures and silly descriptions.

I've also covered a lot of jar lids in snazzy paper so that we can have some moderately attractive storage options, but I have not photographed those. Perhaps I will remember next time I have the camera out.