One last time travel photo from this time era, where I get to confront the internal narrative - this is code for it's going to be long, and after the last few days I still feel like I've been pulled through a hedge sideways, so am not up to seeing my face as it is right now *vbg*
( December 1990Collapse )

My life is still appallingly exciting. Since yesterday I've put the rubbish out and finished The Wheel of Time. I'm 3/4 through the review and quite possibly procrastinating, for when I finish this review there are several others to which I owe some attention and a synopsis to be written and...and...and... lots of 'ands' to be done.

If I don't get a move on, it will be a very long day. My answer to this is that, quite obviously, I need a big cup of tea.

Tonight's dinner (for the curious and yes, I will have extra should anyone be curious enough to want to invite themselves over) will be a pot roast. My cooking method is based on Rashi's description, so it's very Medieval except for the beef, which is Belted Galloway, so a bit more recent but still, at least, heritage. It will be accompanied by baby zucchinis lightly fried with shallots, and all of it served with artichoke-flavoured rice or ureniki in coconut milk with pandan (which is not Medieval at all). If the curious intend to come, the curious should really let me know*, for my place is in teaching mode and teaching mode is busy and very, very messy and I might do some tidying in your honour. I might also wash the floor. And maybe wash some dishes**.

The quantity of food about equals the quantity of mess (because of the size roasting piece I have) and is in inverse proportion to the time I have (I have a meeting this evening, so it won't be a long dinner) which means my day is in perfect harmony.




*And if friends actually take me up on this, I might make stuffed zucchini flowers for entree. Just to round the meal out. Dessert would be chocolate, of course, and, if you ask politely, 16th century style coffee.
**I skipped floor and dishes today in honour of washing linen.

Source Article from http://www.kgbfantasticfiction.org/2013/05/23/sarah-langan-lawrence-c-connolly-june-19th/

Originally published at Matthew Kressel. You can comment here or there.

both of these events affect Jase and Roh. Small flares don't bother them too much, if I know about the flares ahead of time then a teaspoon of panadol will get them through. Solar flares have five different classifications; A B C M & X, each with it's own level of degrees. Learning all this became necessary, because of how they affect Roh in particular. I started with Wikipedia, yeah, I know, but it's a good basic explanation, and a jumping off point that gave me the search terms I needed to learn more. I've learnt, by years of keeping diaries of night terrors, joint pains and gut pain - all of which is severe enough to wake him, screaming in pain, what levels of pain accompany what class of solar flares we have. (Fortunately we haven't had a lot of big ones.) Full moons make them both restless, and generally achey. At around moonrise for the nights either side of the full moon they are completely and absolutely ratty, and on the night of the full moon, I rarely get much sleep. Again, this has all been documented in my years of keeping diaries of my children's' pain.

Mostly I manage it. I've taught Rohan that when the pain starts to come and ask for his Duck ( fluffy toy covering over a heated wheat pack) Duck lives in Roh's bed, but on days of solar flares, I send Duck to school, just in case. Panadol can help so that though they may be uncomfortable, they aren't crying in pain. If they are at school they may not be able to concentrate hugely well, but they can, with guidance, get their work done. If they are asleep, they may be restless, but remain asleep. But because they don't usually affect humans - most sun watchers aren't thinking of much beyond watching the flares and getting images of them (which I admit - looks pretty damn cool) So I have to search for warnings of possible flares, and I do a fairly good job of monitoring.

Except yesterday when the boys and I were all sick, and I was more exhausted than usual, and I just put them to bed without checking anything other than the Bureau of Meteorology site. And, of course, last night Rohan woke up screaming in pain, unable to walk, and all his joints pumping out so much heat. I wrapped him in a sensory blanket with his Duck on his tummy, got some food and nurofen into him, as well as fortified fish oil to help with the joint pain. It took nearly two hours before the pain levels dropped enough for him to finally get to sleep. Tday I looked at the reporting sites, and sure enough, bang on the time we had an M5 class solar flare.

Tonight, just as I was getting tea ready, the boys started acting ratty. I used a somewhat low-tech method to check my suspicions ... I opened the curtains and looked at the very nearly full moon. And sighed.

This is going to be one very long weekend.

My day is appallingly exciting. I just got a phonecall from someone who wants money. A rather nice charity, but, still.. They were very polite. When I said "This is a workplace and if it's not related to my work would you mind ringing someone else?" he did so. Still, my train of thought was interrupted and I am annoyed.

I have already got a paper to 4/5 of where it needs to be. The last 1/5 is going to be hard work, and it's this train of thought that was interrupted.

It wouldn't have been nearly as bad if my reading of the last Wheel of Time book had been interrupted. I'm halfway through and have drafted some notes for my review. Just over 400 pages more and I'm done. Then I can write up the other stack of review books I have read for ticon4 and Liz can get a sturdy email where I justify the beautiful books she has sent me. Then I can wonder at the size of the Wheel of Time series. And at the need for 900 pages to finish it off. Some of this wonder might appear in the review, but I have other things to say, too, so we'll see.

What else have I done so far on this appallingly exciting day? I have prepared for tonight's class, which is on castles. Medieval castles. I need more pictures of Welsh castles, really, but have run out of time for scanning (and they're in hard copy, alas). My hard copy is in big books, I think, and I already have more big books packed for this class than I really should be carrying. I've three hours to contemplate this, during which time I shall try for that last 1000 words and do the first draft of a synopsis and send some urgent emails and stuff.

Appallingly exciting, I tell you.

Still time traveling, but I thought, after showing what I was like just before I went into hospital, I'd show what I was like two and a half months later, a week after I signed myself out of hospital
( day 47 April 1990Collapse )

Originally published at Mary Victoria. Please leave any comments there.

The US health care system isn’t all that, as we know. It charges you for dying.

There must be a Kafka story resembling this somewhere. Or at least, Kafka would have written the tale, had he been alive in our times, in the land of the free, home of the terminally ill. To confront one’s own mortality is one thing. To let a loved one go, quite another.

But to be charged $20000 for it, after a mere two days, is close to unconscionable.

Please read this appeal. Even if you can’t spare a dime, pass the word along. Alma is a storyteller of the first order. This time, unfortunately, the story is true.

THE STORY OF THE WHITE RABBIT

I had all kinds of witty an intelligent things to post around lunchtime. My classes provided me with them, both last night and this morning. The rather curious weather, however, drove them from my mind. It's a shame, for this morning's class, in particular, was delightful.

When the tough get weathered, the tough are driven to cook. Since my NZ potatoes (from Sydney markets) turned out to be genuinely heritage and therefore not potatoes at all, but a type of yam, I've made my favourite yam dish to sustain me over the next few days. It's ages since I've had an occasion to break out the pandan essence, too. And I don't have to eat it tonight (which is good, for I'm not hungry) but can warm it up and have it after teaching tomorrow night. And maybe on Friday and Saturday as well. And it's purple and green: my feminist cooking spree.

I've done a day's work, I guess (notice how reluctantly I admit this) but I really wanted to do a big day's work and be Super Gillian. I'm not the only one affected by this giant rain belt that has descended on us, and I rather suspect I'm not the only one who will be spending tomorrow in catch-up.

My task for the rest of the night (should my eyes hold out) is to read some of the last Wheel of Time book and some of a book on Medieval cooking. If I can't do the real work, then at least I can manage some of the lighter and more fun side of things. By 'lighter' I do not refer to the combined weight of the books. The Wheel of Time book in particular, weighs in at heavy (900 pages!). I know slow readers who are working their way through this series and all I can say is that they have more patience and greater arm-strength than I have. I'm enjoying the reading, of course, but am very grateful I work quickly!

I am breaking this project into a series of little goals to keep me going. And 1/8th of 365 is 45.625 - so I am officially over 1/8th of the way there *vbg* So I thought I'd do some more time travelling, and put up a photo of myself that I almost, almost, didn't use to find completely objectionable ...
( day 46 - back to 1990Collapse )