Emergency alert in the night

There was an amber alert lastnight at 11:36pm regarding the abduction of an 11 year old girl by her father. Woke me up. Not complaining about that, that's how it works.

A second emergency alert came in at 12:21am to cancel the amber alert saying 'child has been located.' Oh good, I thought, the little girl is safe. Not sure I needed to be woken up again, but then again it's good to know the emergency is over, and it meant anyone actively involved in searching for her could stand down, so it makes sense.

Detritus

Conversation we had on vacation last week: what word were you pronouncing wrong in your head for years before finally hearing someone else say it?

Sorry

Yes, Canadians say 'sorry' for a lot of things. This is a form of 'social lubricant' - a nicety we perform to keep everything ticking over nicely and avoid friction. Some non-Canadians see it as a weakness, like we're trying to belittle ourselves before others to make a less likely target of aggression, but we see it as just how you let people know they matter. We were raised to be nice people and think of others.

On being female at a bar

public signage via
This Japanese Life

So lastnight at darts we played a team of lovely people we always enjoy (they take way too long smoking between games, but that's a minor thing). We were at their pub.

There was a rather obnoxious drunkard at the bar who kept throwing coasters at us while we were playing - he was throwing them specifically at one of the other team's players and obviously thought he was being cute. I'd had enough and shouted across the bar at him to cut it out, he took offense and shouted he wasn't throwing them at me, I replied that I didn't care and would appreciate it if he'd just stop.

Let’s talk

Was just reminded that we don't know when our situation is weird if we don't talk to others.

Pretentious awakening

“We’re all pawns in this abhorrent game of Nathaniel’s bookdeath.”

- last line spoken to me in a dream this morning, so pretentious it woke me from a sound sleep.

Next fiction I write, it’s going in.

Prom time - a small moment of pure joy

I was in a tiny charity shop this afternoon and a family was in prom dress shopping, it was so sweet - Dad was picking out shoes for Daughter to try on, little Sister was teasing, Mom looked so proud, Daughter came out of the changeroom in a gorgeous one-shoulder black chiffon dress that looked custom made just for her - the Manager said it had come from David’s Bridal. Seriously, just made my heart so happy.

Less douchey ways

There are less douchey ways to disagree with someone. For example, if I say "I like [insert band name]" and you don't, you can always say "They're not to my taste" or "They're not for me" or "I can't get into them" instead of "They're stupid" or "Only idiots listen to them" - and I recognize that I have on occasion been guilty of this myself, but I always try not to be.

Less control

I've spent a large chunk of my life berating myself for something I suddenly realize I have had far less control over than I had thought. And I just realized something in the past 10 minutes that strengthens that.

Really nicely

This is an interesting interview. Here's my favourite part of it, which is great and accurate, it's the kind of thing a lot of men don't recognize as a thing:

Scientific method

I just read a great post shared by a friend about the scientific method and how you can't be mad at the result if the method was sound. I fully agree.

Then why do I have tarot cards and crystals in my house? Because I also like them.

My life is mine

Tracee Ellis Ross is Glamour's Woman of the Year, and she is amazing.

“My life is mine” is my new motto.

Might deserve its own tattoo.

Get over it

People (not just men) who think 'so he grabbed your ass/complimented your shape/whistled as you walked past, it's not that bad, get over it' - the problem is not exactly what was done/said in these situations (although they're bad enough), it's what we believe might follow.

They’re just vain

So at my second-to-last show during JFL42 a young man with a charming English accent asked me "Why do people take photos at these shows? They're just vain and wanting to say 'look what I was at that you weren't' right?"

Anxiety disorder?

My reaction to the one episode I watched of Handmaid’s Tale, and what’s been happening under the Cheeto 45, got me thinking. I know my mother had a growing anxiety disorder, do I need to worry about that? Anyway, I found this article, according to which there are 12 signs of anxiety disorder:

Four months on.

I just looked up from my work and noticed the date. Four months ago today, my Mum passed away.

She’s The Doctor

So, I've had some time to think about the announcement of the new doctor.

Giving up?

So I've had this goal in my life for my entire adulthood. It's something my Mother excelled at, that other people do all the time and seem to find easy, and logically it is, but I've just never been able to do it. I've struggled with it for years. I've tried to take it in baby steps, I've tried to go all in and immerse myself, I've tried scheduling it, and nothing works. I think I'm making progress, and then I just collapse and it was all for nothing.

First time reporting someone to HR

In the elevator on the way up to the office just now, I mentioned to one of the assistants in the elevator with me 'can you believe it's almost Christmas?' and she said 'yes' which kind of threw me, so I said 'it just seems like the fall went by so fast' and she said 'the years go faster when you're older' not even joking, like I'm ancient or something. Whatever.

Sad return

Finally home from vacation.

Opened my door to the disaster area I left from whirlwind packing, plus the furniture all still pulled out from the walls from when the roof leaked and the ceiling fell in mid-August, plus all the buckets and towels I'd left in case it all happened again in my absence (where it's all been for over two more months while the building management apparently fixes the roof), plus the stained ceiling tiles that have not yet been replaced, plus all the kitchen cupboard contents still stacked on the floor in the dining room from the inspection access from the week before vacation, plus another notice that my unit would need to be accessed YET AGAIN - tomorrow - for phone line upgrades throughout the building... and just started to cry.

How is it possible to have spent such a glorious 11 days and come back to this?