katkun1

[katkun1]

Look up a tutorial on isolated pin stitches.  They are easy to do :).  Though honestly if you are using white on a darker fabric you can just travel and you won’t see it.  I wouldn’t travel with dark stitched on white fabric though.  Check out flosstube, lots of tutorials.  Crossstitch is very relaxing and you can watch tv or listen to a book at the same time :)

So I bought a cross-stitch kit because I thought it would be fun - it would give me something to do (that isn’t screen time) and I’d be able to mail the finished product to my grandmother for her birthday.

Now that it’s actually arrived, it seems like a terrible idea! How on earth am I supposed to do all those solo white stitches? What if I count wrong? Why is this a “beginner” one - it seems super hard.

Serves me right for impulse buying things from the internet at night.

#littlecondo

[katkun1]

poor Peter (again)

The poor Johnsons :(.  And poor Peter :(.  Some situations are so no win.  Love Beverly, as ever.

#Rivers of London #peter grant

[katkun1]

Ah, Peter

I want an excuse to call someone a muppet. I will have to think about how to make it happen.

also, how adorable he is so proud of Thomas 'tiger tank' Nightingale. I will need to go through some day and do a tally, but pretty sure it would not be a safe drinking game.

#The Hanging Tree #Rivers of London #Peter Grant #Thomas Nightingale

[katkun1]

Poor Peter

But I don't think he would have made the same decision as Lesley.

and I really don't see a problem with the relationship between him and Beverly. She is an adult and she clearly saw something in him, waiting and wanting him after that time in the country.

#Rivers of london #Foxglove summer #Peter grant

[katkun1]

Abigail's charm

Do we ever find out what Abigail's charm does? Or it was just a nothing?

#Broken homes #Rivers of london #Peter grant

[katkun1]

Peter....

Listening to an American senator saying after high school all you can expect from your kids is a phone call once a week. I don't think Peter's mother would be ok with that ❤️

#Whispers underground #Rivers of London #Peter Grant

[katkun1]

Beautiful ❤️

Love being brutally called out by the British Library

[katkun1]

Moon over soho

I remember being really disappointed by this one every other time I have read it. But when you assume that Peter was essentially under the influence and just go with it, it is really delightful. His parents, the irregulars. The audiobook helps a lot with just going with the flow.

#Rivers of London #Ben Aaronovitch #Moon Over Soho

[katkun1]

Amazon, abebooks, book depository.  It is pretty easily available.  

anyway I haven't been able to read the complete chronicles of the chrestomanci because I have never been able to find a copy of the lives of Christopher chant 😤😩

[katkun1]

You should check out the new Ryder novel they are posting if you want info on Mohawk and semiramis.

“The Pied Piper’s autistic great-grandson who puts tiny GoPros on ferrets” is a good character concept with which Ilona Andrews does frustratingly little. Fuck this psychic Italian assassin/count, the rat dude deserves to be the romantic lead.

[katkun1]

Omg off to read

we did all of this hamilton discourse in 2015!!!!!!! if you weren’t around for it then just know it happened and every take possible was had!!!!! go get some juice and log off

[katkun1]

Take it from a doctor - unless your state is a magical unicorn that has plenty of tests, plenty of PPE, and is contact tracing, the best thing you can do for anything short of ‘I can’t breathe’ is stay home, and stay away from everyone. You could also do us a favor and stay home and stay away from everyone even if you feel fine and incidentally avoid injuries, etc because we would rather you stay out of the ER. Sounds like you are doing it right, Copperbadge. And sounds like you have a bit of existential depression, like many people right now. Thanks.

dignitywhatdignity replied to your post “Sorry I missed stream last night guys! I honestly lay down on the bed…”

Ugh, I’m pregnant with bad seasonal allergies I can’t really treat, which has resulted in some secondary infections. Plus my husband has bad cabin fever and won’t admit he has what I’m 98% sure is mild but chronic anxiety. So there’s been a lot of me coughing horribly and him “just asking” if I’m *really sure* it’s a sinus infection.

Man, that sounds awful. One of my colleagues is set to give birth in like a week, and she’s miserable enough without allergies. 

It may be helpful, given anxiety often isn’t rational but I’m sure it’s tiring to keep being asked, to discuss what you’d be doing differently if it WAS covid. Like, a sinus infection is basically treated in the same fashion because most of them are viral too, correct? And even if you are taking antibiotics, that’s not going to harm you if it is covid. So it may help to point out that even if it isn’t a sinus infection, you’re still treating “covid” when you treat the sinus infection. Between that and having or making a concrete plan for if it does end up being covid and you take a turn for the worse, that may settle him somewhat. My mother was very relieved when I told her I had an ER “go bag” packed in case I get very sick very suddenly; now she knows I’m prepared and there’s a plan in place.

musegaarid replied to your post “Sorry I missed stream last night guys! I honestly lay down on the bed…”

Actually, this is how the coronavirus manifested for my partner. He’s just really lethargic and unable to taste or smell anything. He’s also got a minor cough and runny nose, though those might be allergies. Anyway, he’s a paramedic so he got tested and sure enough, he’s got it. It’s strange to say that I hope you have it, too, but if this is the worst it gets for you and then you get immunity, that seems like a pretty good deal. Feel better soon!

I did hear that losing a sense of smell/taste was a symptom, but fortunately it’s not quite that – I can still taste food, like I had a chicken sandwich this morning and could taste the chicken and the avocado, it’s just I got no enjoyment from it, and was very unenthused about even making it. I keep thinking “Oh, I want something hot, I want something made for me” but then I run through the list of foods I could order in, which in Chicago is a lot of options, and I just can’t come up with anything. Even pizza, which I will almost never say no to and which is so close I could go pick up so I wouldn’t have to deal with delivery, I’m just like “Meh. The cheese will upset my stomach.”

col1999 replied to your post “Sorry I missed stream last night guys! I honestly lay down on the bed…”

God, you totally articulated my thoughts. Especially the nose running all winter - is this normal runny nose or Corvid 19 runny nose? I’m hot - do I have a fever or is it because the sun is shining on me at my desk right now? I have to keep calming myself down, or maybe if not ‘calming’ at least settling myself down. And the ENNUI is killing me. I feel like I’m having mild panic/anxiety attacks about work, but they are so flattened…I guess that’s good, I guess. ��

When I was younger and reading the “Death” series of Discworld novels, I remember Albert (Death’s servant) was described as perpetually having a drip at the end of his nose, and I was like “Gross, how does that even work? I’ve never had a drip at the end of my nose, that must be like a joke” and this past winter I have had a perpetual, INFURIATING drip at the end of my nose. Getting older is terrible. 

I figure, I know the main symptoms, and I know which of them I tend to have anyway, so I discount those, and as long as I don’t have a fever it doesn’t matter anyway. So I’m just slowly wearing out the battery on my digital thermometer. 

tienriu replied to your post “Sorry I missed stream last night guys! I honestly lay down on the bed…”

I think you and I are in the same weird space (also got my masks and extra toilet paper ahead of the panic buying for completely different and long running reasons so lol). Hearing everybody else struggling I keep finding myself second guessing my own 'fine’. If everybody isn’t fine, is my 'fine’ somehow a manifestation of not being fine? I have finally decided to just stop asking myself if I’m truly fine and just letting the anxiety hit me when it decides to arrive.

Yeah, I ask myself if I’m in denial like 2-3 times a day, but I feel like if I were in denial I wouldn’t have been able to hold up against my onslaught of asking this long.  :D

eimearkuopio reblogged your post and added:

I needed this. I had a slightly elevated temperature and sore throat last week and so I’ve not gone out since just so I wouldn’t risk making other people sick, but I wasn’t sick enough to really “feel” sick, except that I’ve also been unable to concentrate and work even when I was trying and my boss said it was fine and to just not force myself to work instead of recovering, but today was meant to be my (self-imposed) “back to work” deadline and I stayed up until 2 playing video games and am now lying in bed paralysed with stress over WHAT TO DO. Do I go for a run? Do I fold the giant pile of clean laundry that has built up? Do I tidy my desk? Do I shower and get dressed, or should that wait until after the hypothetical run? Do I just force myself to turn on the computer, log in to the server, and open the appropriate code?

Aw, I’m sorry you’ve been sick! And it’s super hard to get back to work at the best of times. I’m lucky that I’m expected to be “at work” for very specific hours, and to set my away message when I’m afk, which gets me working on time, but it’s still rough. 

I’ve taken to keeping the Tasks app open on my phone and adding literally every task I need to do, from “buy headphones” (I need a corded set with a mic to participate in work conference calls) to “read the news” (for my job) to “scoop the litter” (which I don’t normally need to be reminded to do). Then every day I put them in order of how I’ll do them, with anything I think I probably won’t have the energy for at the bottom. I know that freaks some people out a LOT because that’s a LONG LIST TO GET THROUGH but for me it’s comforting that I won’t forget anything because it’s all in the list, and the decision about when to do them is made. :D 

#Copperbadge

[katkun1]

I really needed that!

meanwhile in australia

[katkun1]

Argh? What did tumblr do? Ugh . Sigh. Anyway - was trying to say that I am loving working over two on 28 count but trying not to strain my eyes beyond that. I do have some 32 count I am going to do a project for my little girl on. I am back to being completely addicted to cross stitch, which has been fun and slightly expensive (new frames, stands, fabric, pattern, needle minders, framing completed work). I am enjoying spoiling myself.

rdprice29 replied to your post “Random ask is random but since your profile pic is relevant..! Jerrod…”

Sam, I’m going to Disney at Christmas. If I can find one, I’ll send it to you!

Oh, thank you for the offer! But I found Disney’s online store where the limited edition ears are for sale, so when that pair goes up I’m gonna buy a pair. :D

I’m gonna pay $30 for mickey mouse ears and I’m not even sorry. There’s no being sorry under late capitalism. 

[katkun1]

I got some like these from Etsy for my son.  From dicecritters.  

Pumpkin Dice Latte 🎃 ☕️

#seanan mcguire

[katkun1]

House of many ways next time!  I am so excited!

On this week’s episode, we’re talking about space operas…. IN SPAAAAACE. The tentpoles this week are The Tea Master and the Detective by Aliette de Bodard, the fanfic A Deeper Season by lightgetsin and sahiya, and the pilot episodes of Farscape and Killjoys.

What We’re Into Lately

The London Celebrities series by Lucy Parker Monty Don’s Italian Gardens Detective L “Quid Pro Quo” by Dira Sudis

Other Stuff We Mentioned

Ancillary Justice series by Ann Leckie Noel Streatfield Elementary The Space Opera Renaissance by David Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer Chilling Effect by Valerie Valdes Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey Planetary romance Jupiter Ascending Vorkosigan Saga Stargate: Atlantis The Adventure Zone Firefly Babylon 5 The Goblin Emperor Ancillary Justice Firefly Stargate: Atlantis Splendor & Misery by clipping Shards of Honor “Right Answer” [second Deeper Season] Ender’s Game A Civil Campaign The Expanse Cowboy Bebop Star Trek Star Wars Acorna books by Anne McCaffrey Nimisha’s Ship by Anne McCaffrey Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials series Space Opera by Cat Valente Mobile Suit Gundam Wing

For Next Time

House of Many Ways by Diana Wynne Jones

Transcription:

The transcript for this episode is available here. Thanks as always to our brilliant scribal team!

#dwj #betheserpent

[katkun1]

I took anthropology/zoology because it fit the premed classes I needed. I enjoyed the classes and don’t have any regrets, can’t imagine anything I would have liked more. I did go ahead into medical school but honestly what you do in undergrad doesn’t really matter in terms of career path. Whether you do anthropology or physics or whatever, it is a diploma and then you figure out what you want to do next. Internships and summer/campus jobs are helpful in terms of figuring out life I think.

hi!! i'm currently on the verge of committing to an anthropology BA but i am also Very Scared of doing so, mostly bc basically everything i read laments the lack of job prospects in like every subfield imaginable lmao. can i ask like... the bare bones of how u got to where u are now? and any bits of advice u may have for someone trying to make a big life decision toward anthro? i know every person's different and i'm not asking for like personalized career coaching, just.. trying to get a feel

oh MAN i feel ya there

my story is really atypical because I am a stubborn cuss and also I have extremely supportive parents. I wanna get that out there now: without my parents’ financial support, I would not be doing this today.

I picked my major alphabetically. I kid you not, I wanted to go into paleontology and study lizard evolution, but one day I was walking to this physics class all bio majors had to take. It was at 8 AM and this was in South Bend, Indiana, and my fucking eyelids froze shut and I realized that I hated everything, so I turned around, dropped the class, shot an e-mail to my academic advisor, and went back to bed.

I bounced around for a while until my mom sat me down and said I had to actually pick a major. I have dyscalculia, so Accounting was out, and African American Studies seemed inappropriate for me to wedge my way into, and then Anthropology was the third thing on the list. I took a class, fell in love, and that was that. 

So fast forward to my junior year, and i get this baller internship at the Field Museum. One of the curators (who is a bad person but we’ll get to that) says that I should apply the next year, he’d take me on as a student, he knows my undergrad mentors.

So I apply, I don’t get in, he ghosts me the entire month of May, and I don’t know what to do. My dad says just go to Chicago and show up, so I do. I basically told him that I was his problem and I wasn’t going away, and he let me continue to work on his material- for free, of course. I ended up getting a paying job with another curator who was impressed by my corvid knowledge and hated the curator I was working with- I’m pretty sure that I was partially hired as internal political machinations, but whatever, I had a job. I apply the next year and I get in, and then…

well, then the Field undergoes this massive financial restructuring, and the first curator gets a job at American University because the museum eliminates his position. He didn’t want to take an early retirement, so he got another job. The second curator, the one who’d taken me under his wing, retired as his position was also eliminated- but he was a lot older and only a couple years out from retirement anyways. I asked the first curator what I should do and he said apply to American and he’d take me.

I didn’t want to go to American, I wanted to stay in Chicago, but fine, whatever. I applied, and their department head wrote me a very nice, polite, and horribly confused e-mail saying that he didn’t have the permission to bring grad students and they couldn’t fund me or have room for me. 

So I try to talk to this guy, but he again ghosts me. Won’t answer my e-mails, my phone calls, e-mails from other professors about me- and he actively avoids me in the department. At this point, I say fuck it, cut my losses, and find a new project- something I’m actually much better at and much more passionate about. 

The thing is, so much of what I’ve done and where I am… is accidental, and done without much agonizing. I charge headlong into things. Sometimes it works out for me! Had I not gotten so angry about my eyelids freezing shut, who knows what I’d be doing today. Had my dad not offered to pay for everything while my future was in flux, I would have had to go back to southern Indiana. Had I not been in the right place at the right time, I wouldn’t have gotten to work at the Field for as long as I did. I believe in sticking up for myself, and I believe in doing what I love. I believe that anthropology can make the world a better place, and I believe that I can contribute to that- and I love it. That’s why I stick with it. 

The job market is terrible everywhere. Fortunately, even if you don’t go in to anthropology, it makes a fantastic major and is really hireable. I know anthro majors who have gone into education, public policy, advertising, public health, medicine- and they bring the four-field approach with them. Even though they’re not excavating, they use that holistic approach and nuanced understanding of different human experiences to bring sensitivity and balance to their professions. There’s a LOT you can do with an anthropology degree.