lydamorehouse: (Default)
This continues to be a very weird time in which to have a small press book come out, but I was interviewed by Salon Futura about Unjust Cause the other day and it has been posted as an audio file: https://www.salonfutura.net/2020/04/interview-lyda-morehouse-tate-hallaway/

If you are interested in such things, please check it out. And, of course, if you are so moved (and haven't done so already) please buy my book: https://www.wizardstowerbooks.com/shop/unjust-cause/

Or buy one for a friend! Or several friends. Better yet, buy it and Precinct 13 as a set!

/advertisement.

In other news, the sun is shining today. I am hoping to go out for an early morning walk to enjoy all the bright light and bird sounds. Mason has a physics test that he has to get up for in about an hour or so. Shawn is dealing with continued bad news at work, so I'm just as happy to have an excuse to get out of the house. In fact, I may also brave some grocery shopping in a bit because we are running out of the basics: milk, eggs, and flour.

Yesterday, I took some extra yeast over to a friend (for a no-touch drop off) who has run out. I also hived off Vera, fed the new bit, and brought it over in disposable Tupperware in case my friend would like to try her hand at sourdough without the hassle of starting it. It occurs to me that if anyone else local to me would like a cup or two of sourdough starter, mine is very, very robust and healthy. I would happily make deliveries. The more I hive her off, the healthier she remains. Bonus: once you start feeding it, the starter is yours to name as you wish. My friend is going to be thinking up gender-neutral names and has informed me that the starter now uses they/them pronouns. Vera and I are very proud parents (Vera)/grandparents(me) of this To-Be-Named new starter and hope they have a long and productive life.

Another friend of mine, who I talked to on the ACTUAL PHONE the other day, told me that he didn't want to be part of this whole 'meme' of naming sourdough starters. I told him that was fine, but that he should not be mistaken in thinking that naming sourdough is in any way a NEW fad. Tons of my cookbooks from the 1960s suggest that naming sourdough is traditional--or at least was something people were already doing back then. It might be a fad? But it is an OLD fad, not a meme.

What seems to be new-ish is out-clevering one another with pun names. Though, somehow I doubt even that's really all that new.

I found myself a new pen pal on Facebook yesterday, and this is a continued reminder that if you would like mail I am happy to send you some of the really terribly cheesy greeting cards I have picked up over the years at estate sales. I am, what they call in the pen friends fandom, L/L: a "long letter writer." So, drop me a note in my PM or at [email protected].  I am also what is known as: A/A, "answers all," because I have no requirements for pen friends, not even that you write back, necessarily. 

At this point, consider it if only to help save the USPS.  

Interestingly, my Canadian pen friend informs me that we have significantly slowed down in our correspondence. Only a day or so ago, did she receive a letter I sent in early April. We used to be about two weeks delayed (which is only funny because I could drive 8 hours and throw a letter over the Canadian border,) but now we seem closer to a month. She actually figures the delay is on Canada Post's side, because they did some kind of massive layoffs. But that may be happening here, too, if we can't figure out how to keep supporting our postal carriers.

Right.

I should gird my loins and head out to the grocery store. Wish me luck!
lydamorehouse: (Default)
sometimes when you stare into the void, the void stares back
Image: Sometimes when you stare into the void, the void stares back....

Last night I was showing off my progress on anxiety quilt #3 to [personal profile] rachelmanija and Willow decided to climb under the quilt and peek out at me. When I sent the resulting photo I snapped (above), to Rachel, I was informed I MUST post this picture. So, here it is: the cutest void you may have seen in awhile. (Not to throw shade at anyone else's void kitties, because I am certain they are adorable. I just happened to get a good shot.)

But, then, for [personal profile] pameladean I feel I owe equal time to the sunshine floof whom she stans:

sunshine and giant paws
Image: same chair, different quilt, different cat--all the sunshine and giant paws.

All right, hopefully, that has helped cheer any of you who are getting down with this whole pandemic bullsh*t. 

Yesterday, I went out and got everyone in my household a coffee, because I am determined to single-handedly keep my coffee shop alive. Claddaugh is a mom shop (Mary actually employs a lot of her own children, but 'pop' refuses to work there so far as I can tell.) And, they've got a really great no touch pick-up system in place. If you are local and love really good coffee (or are just on a support local business kick), check them out: http://www.claddaghcoffeecafe.com/curbside-pickup.html  You can also buy gift cards just to keep them up and running.

Our day was otherwise pretty good. We did not manage to get out for our architectural tour of Saint Paul, but I did a LOT of yard work. I uncovered our front garden and discovered a few nice surprises. The monarda/bee-balm has self-propagated like mad, which makes me happy because I'm a big fan. I also noticed that the sweat bees/halictidae  (their main pollinator) were all over the bloodroot last night while I was out grilling dinner, which is fantastic news. I have been working towards a bee friendly lawn. To that end, I've been trying to provide habitats for all the bees--including the pollinators, like this one, that no one particularly thinks about. As I have joked to my family, if certain native bees need barren dirt to build their homes in, I totally have that habitat available for them! (I refuse to use fertilizer, and so often kill my grass semi-annually.)

Because it was Earth Day, Mason's ecology crew from his Science Museum job had an impromptu get-together on Zoom. He loves his work crew and its been one of the hardest parts of this whole thing to have been furloughed--not because of the money it provided, but all of the opportunity and friendships. He was positively giddy having gotten to talk to them, which just shows you that he is, in fact, and extroverted introvert... because then he immediately went on a solitary walk to his secret hidey spot on the banks of the Mississippi to read and chill out after all that social interaction. :-)

I had further adventures in sour dough in that I tried a sourdough French loaf last night that actually turned out amazing? I think Vera was mocking me because I had previously decided that her feeding schedule was driving me bonkers and had made plans to "fridge" her.  I mean, it's time. So, of course, I said goodbye to daily bread and, fed her one last time for the week, and shoved her into the back of the fridge, intending to forget about her until the reminder went off next Wednesday to refresh and feed her. So, OF COURSE, she produced the best loaf I think I have ever made possibly in my life, but certainly with sour dough. 

So, I hived her off this morning, because we ate every last scrap of it and now my family is demanding more.

Damn you, Vera!

Will I never be free from the tyranny of sour dough???

So,that's me. I will close with the first picture I sent Rachel.  This is my third anxiety quilt. I have not officially finished with backings or batting any of the previous ones, but they are the size they're going to be, basically.  (The patchwork one is one I intend to continue to return to and grow.)  This one is actually "commissioned" for Rachel and, because of that, will probably the first one that I actually finish/finish, since I want it to be usable for her. I have plans for more and by god, like a lot of you, I'm probably going to be ready to open an Etsy store once this thing lifts... or maybe even if things go on....

Picture comes with cat, because, for some reason, Willow LOVES this quilt.


anxiety quilt 3, void cat for size
Image: anxiety quilt number 3, void cat for size...


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