larryhammer | Network

My brother texts me:

Snow, snow, go away
Come again some other day
Early August, shall we say?

I tell him the snow has its fingers in its ears singing La la la don't hear you. At least it wasn't the dump we had last week, just 5 or 6 centimetres ie 2 inches. I swept it from the steps and shovelled it from the walkway and sidewalk. More fell in the late afternoon, covering the steps, but the sidewalk remains clear. Either foot traffic or the city salting, though I haven't seen any bobcats. I might try getting out tomorrow, though now they're calling for gusty winds before the bipolar vortex comes back tomorrow night. And of course if I'm up at Loblaws I'll want to buy cream liqueur and if I go to Fiesta I'll want to buy cake, and I mustn't have either. Not merely calories: my innards really don't like alcohol but my spasming back muscles love it.

Have read nothing but Dr Siris because nothing else registers. Can't remember if I'm on 11 or 12 at the moment.

kingstoken

Snowflake Challenge: A warmly light quaint street of shops at night with heavy snow falling.

Challenge #11

In your own space, grant someone's wish from Challenge #5. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it and include a link to your own post with the wishes you granted if you feel comfortable doing so.

I went through the wishlists and mostly gave recs, music for snowynight and kanadka, books for skytintedwater, podcasts for queer-scribbling, and a movie for cypresssunn.

loganberrybunny

Public

355/365: Birmingham Hippodrome
Click for a larger, sharper image
I was in Birmingham today. I didn't have much time to myself, but I was able to have coffee in the Dragon, which was nice as it's the pub a group of us had our post-UK PonyCon meal in last year. A lot quieter at 10:30am today, though! Here's a photo of the Hippodrome, Birmingham's largest theatre (capacity 1,935 seats), taken with a wide-angle setting hence the odd angles. The pavement decoration is because this area is right on the edge of the city's Gay Village. And the theatre district, obviously. And Chinatown (hence the name of the Dragon). And just down from New Street station. And only a few hundred yards from the UK PonyCon 2025 venue. And rather wet this morning!

Current Mood: lethargic

xinger

图片描述：一个非乐高积木的瀑布，旁边有魏无羡迷你任务和蓝忘机站在一起。魏无羡有自己的笛子，蓝忘机有自己个古琴。身边有三只兔子，身后还有一道彩虹。

♥ 为了《像金鱼一样吧》的挑战，第三周，在

beagoldfish的社群里。

shadowkat

So, I'm scrolling through my Dreamwidth Correspondence List, and finding all sorts of interesting things!

* Disney attempts to create a fun marketing meme only to delete it when it goes unexpectedly wrong..except you can't easily delete things on the internet

"Social media changed the marketing game forever. Nowadays, brands gain popularity and "street cred" by engaging with folks in comment sections and through relatable posts. It's estimated that when brands reply to comments on Threads, it boosts their engagement by 42%.

However, some posts on social media can turn against big brands, and that's exactly what recently happened to Disney. "Share a Disney quote that sums up how you're feeling right now!" they prompted their fans. But they got a little more than they anticipated: people really let them know how they were feeling, especially about the social and political state of the country. [Americans aren't happy campers, needless to say.]

And, in a moment of poor judgment, they deleted the thread, resulting in a "Streisand effect": instead of going away, the screenshots from the thread went viral."

* Donate what you can - Cross Stitch Patterns to Support Minnesota Non-Profits and Mutual Aid

"As a crafter, I believe in 'craftivism' - a form of activism that uses craft to convey political or social messages. Not only that, but during times of hardship, trauma, and chaos, craft, art, and joy is a form of resistance.

Patterns are created using Floss Cross and manual adjustments - NO AI ART HERE.

The idea is this - FREE cross stitch (alpha) patterns. They can be used for cross stitch, needlepoint, and more. My only ask is that you read about and check out the links I have posted to various Minneapolis/Twin Cities/Minnesota nonprofits and mutual aids and donate if and where you can, whether it be monetarily or by sharing and amplifying these organizations."

[I'm not really a crafter - I am more of a fine artist - so I'm just sharing it with you. Well unless you can poorly knitted scarves, blankets and hats (some unfinished) - crafting, in which case yes.]

* Lore Olympus Will Be Amazon Prime Video's next Animated Show

Webtoon's hit Greek myth romance is getting animated courtesy of Prime Video and the Jim Henson Company.

[Jim Henson Company? Interesting.]

I'd rather they made the Buffy Comics into an animated series, particularly the Last Slayer (which I adored) about a 50 something Buffy and Spike hooking up, and training Willow/Tara's daughter after both died, in an AU version of the verse. But that's just me.

pepysdiary_feed

Posted by Samuel Pepys

https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1663/01/21/

Up early leaving my wife very ill in bed … [de ses Mois – L&M] and to my office till eight o’clock, there coming Ch. Pepys¹ to demand his legacy of me, which I denied him upon good reason of his father and brother’s suing us, and so he went away. Then came Commissioner Pett, and he and I by agreement went to Deptford, and after a turn or two in the yard, to Greenwich, and thence walked to Woolwich. Here we did business, and I on board the Tangier-merchant, a ship freighted by us, that has long lain on hand in her despatch to Tangier, but is now ready for sailing. Back, and dined at Mr. Ackworth’s, where a pretty dinner, and she a pretty, modest woman; but above all things we saw her Rocke, —[?? D.W.]— which is one of the finest things done by a woman that ever I saw. I must have my wife to see it. After dinner on board the Elias, and found the timber brought by her from the forest of Deane to be exceeding good. The Captain gave each of us two barrels of pickled oysters put up for the Queen mother.

So to the Dock again, and took in Mrs. Ackworth and another gentlewoman, and carried them to London, and at the Globe tavern, in Eastcheap, did give them a glass of wine, and so parted. I home, where I found my wife ill in bed all day, and her face swelled with pain. My Will has received my last two quarters salary, of which I am glad. So to my office till late and then home, and after the barber had done, to bed.

Footnotes

Read the annotations

https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1663/01/21/

hamsterwoman

Snowflake Challenge promotional banner featuring an image of a wrapped giftbox with a snowflake on the gift tag. Text: Snowflake Challenge January 1-31.

Challenge #10: Big Mood (Board) – CHOOSE SOMETHING YOU LOVE AND CREATE A MINI MOOD COLLECTION OF THREE (or more) ITEMS THAT EVOKE YOUR FEELINGS ABOUT IT. You don’t have to limit yourself to visual media, or collect the items into a special format like a square (though you can if you’d like).

OK, I’d never made a Moodboard before, but had been sort of wanting to try it, so this was the perfect opportunity. I thought briefly about whether I should do a Taskmaster one, but I do feel like my colorbars from last year fill a similar niche, so I felt like I’d done it. Well, besides Taskmaster, I think it’s fair to say I have only one truly active fandom at the moment, so… Elis James & John Robins it was. And I might have gotten a little carried away XD

(Let me know if this looks giant on your page and I'll add a cut -- mine seems to automatically resize it to something reasonable, but not sure how universal that is.)

( Blathering )

*

Challenge #11: In your own space, grant someone's wish from Challenge #5.

I really like the idea of this challenge, but don’t terribly like the idea of linking to “granted wishes”, so I won’t do that part. I’ve already granted a couple of wishes when originally browsing Challenge #5, but this was my reminder to go finish commenting on another one I’d done in my head but not actually commented on. But then I went ahead and browsed the day 5 comments some more until I granted a wish I hadn’t even looked at before. I plan to continue doing that, but with that I feel like I can call the challenge “done” for the purposes of posting about it :)

Oh, right, and I should probably link to my wishlist, shouldn’t I.

hannah

Reading Jean Baudrillard these days remains rewarding and thought-provoking, except for the occasional moment where he starts talking about nuclear proliferation and I realize he's taken several hundred words to say what Tom Lehrer could manage with just a fraction of that.

Watch on YouTube

Current Mood: amused
Current Music: Who's Next - Tom Lehrer

phys_environment_feed

https://phys.org/news/2026-01-vital-pyrenees-fast.html

Snow is a defining feature of mountain ranges, and of winter itself for much of the world. But beyond its scenic value, snow plays a vital role in mountain ecosystems, as well as a range of human socioeconomic activity, and it is one of the climatic elements most sensitive to global warming. In recent decades, its quantity, duration and behavior have all changed significantly.

https://phys.org/news/2026-01-vital-pyrenees-fast.html

pushkin666

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

Current Mood: awake
Current Location: on my Chandler/Joey chair
Current Music: Watching Evil

kaberett

Back in November I made a ridiculously overengineered parsnip risotto, as a way of dipping a toe into my next cookbook project. I said at the time that it was very tasty, and also I was unlikely to ever make it again.

( Temporary dietary restrictions. )

twistedchick

I think FOTUS is trying to get Greenland in order to impress his dead father. Where's a shrink when the country needs one?

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Rebekah Harding

https://www.themarysue.com/coach-cherry-bag-stains/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908813

A Florida woman’s mom gifts her a small, pink Coach purse with cherries, and she wears it out to a restaurant. Then, she sees what it did to her shirt and questions the quality of the designer handbag.

In a video with over 1.2 million views, TikToker Amaia (@amaiapellow) sits across from her sister at an outdoor restaurant. Her sister wears a green shirt with a prominent burgundy stain on the shoulder.

https://www.themarysue.com/coach-cherry-bag-stains/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908813

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Sarah Fimm

https://www.themarysue.com/the-10-best-anime-romance-movies-of-all-time/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908922

Two boys talk in a flower patch in "Stranger By The Shore"

Stolen glances. Handwritten confessions. Whispered wishes for senpai to notice. Do you know what this means? Anime love is in the air! If you’re looking for a will-they-won’t-they between a painfully shy pair, or a roller-coaster romance between high-octane lovers, odds are there’s something here for you. After all, these aren’t your run-of-the-mill love stories, but the greatest tales of anime devotion ever told. Here they are, the ten best anime romance movies of all time. And best of all, you don’t have to wait three seasons until they kiss!

Your Name

Directed by Makoto Shinkai, Your Name is a sci-fi/romance box office smash, and was briefly the highest-grossing Japanese film of all time. With a track record like that, you know it’s good. It’s the story of Mitsuha and Taki, two Japanese teens who periodically switch bodies at the same time a strange comet passes close to the Earth. Attempting to make sense of their Freaky Friday circumstances, the pair communicate with each other by leaving messages—and fall head over heels in the process. As Taki and Mitsuha attempt to meet each other in their own skin, they realize that distance isn’t the only thing that they’ll have to cross; they’ll need to travel through time as well. It’s a profoundly moving tale of devotion that transcends time and space—two teens who refuse to let even the most apocalyptic of circumstances stand in the way of love.

https://www.themarysue.com/the-10-best-anime-romance-movies-of-all-time/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908922

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Jonathan Wright

https://www.themarysue.com/jenny-slate-does-not-have-kind-words-about-justin-baldoni/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908975

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 18: Jenny Slate attends the premiere of "Marcel The Shell With Shoes On" at the Whitby Hotel on June 18, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Dominik Bindl/Getty Images)

The whole It Ends with Us Blake Lively–Justin Baldoni saga is the kind of Hollywood drama that makes you wonder if anyone involved ever heard of HR departments before bringing together a crew of hundreds to work on a feature-length project.

And unfortunately, the more we learn about what went down during filming, that question becomes less rhetorical and more like a distress signal for how showbiz continues to operate to this day.

https://www.themarysue.com/jenny-slate-does-not-have-kind-words-about-justin-baldoni/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908975

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Rachel Tolleson

https://www.themarysue.com/connor-storrie-paparazzi-explained/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908768

The news that paparazzi still hound celebrities like this is almost as shocking as their behavior. The audacity, really. Nobody is owed anything, especially to people whose job titles are just fancy excuses to stalk celebrities and take unsolicited photos. (Not you, hired paparazzi. You’re safe–for now.)

As everybody knows, unless you live under a rock or are homophobic, Heated Rivalry has taken over the world. You can’t go a day without seeing a photo or an article or hear somebody talking about it. Don’t get me wrong; I love that it’s popular. Queer media, especially in times like this, is the most at-risk, so seeing a queer show take off is wonderful.

https://www.themarysue.com/connor-storrie-paparazzi-explained/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908768

phys_environment_feed

https://phys.org/news/2026-01-analysis-carbon-account-storage-duration.html

Carbon dioxide removal technologies are becoming increasingly important for climate action, but their differing storage times matter for policy design. A new study published in Environmental and Resource Economics by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) provides guidance based on economic principles. While non-permanent carbon storage plays a valuable role as economies transition away from fossil fuels, its contribution is less valuable than permanent storage; this should be reflected in carbon pricing schemes that aim to incentivize the ramping-up of removals.

https://phys.org/news/2026-01-analysis-carbon-account-storage-duration.html

ysabetwordsmith

The hidden microbes that decide how sourdough tastes

The microbes living in sourdough starters don’t just appear by chance—they’re shaped by what bakers feed them. New research shows that while the same hardy yeast tends to dominate sourdough starters regardless of flour type, the bacteria tell a more complex story. Different flours—like whole wheat or bread flour—encourage different bacterial communities, which can subtly influence flavor, texture, and fermentation.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

jadelennox

Gandalf was a chickenshit with no self-control who could have prevented the massive death toll at Pelennor Fields. Take the ring, kill the baddie, jump into Mount Doom before it has a chance to corrupt you. But nooooo, it's way more fun to have a grey-Maia/fire-Maia punch-up in a bottomless pit in order to emerge in a gleam of backlighting and inspirational music riding a glowing horsey like a tween girl's puberty dreams, than it is to take the ring, zap in, punch the eyeball Maia in his dumb eyeball, and then jump into the lava.

juushika

Title: A Cruel God Reigns (Zankokuna Kami ga Shihai Suru)
Author: Moto Hagio
Published: 1992-2001
Rating: 4.5 of 5
Page Count: 3260 (202+194+184+191+192+188+190+190+190+190+190+189+192+192+191+190+202)
Total Page Count: 562,155
Text Number: 2121
Read Because: saw this mentioned when browsing a random Tumblr
Review: I didn't realize until the last page that this is by the author of The Heart of Thomas, and then suddenly it was so surprise that this is so good. Because it is so good. In two halves: a teen boy is pressured into a sexual relationship by his new stepfather; and the abuse has a long tail, explored through the protagonist's relationship with his step brother. I feel like most takes on this narrative would be either half, and therefore neater; intentionally, this denies neat: character arcs circle, regress, and stagnate; people try to help in bad ways and for the wrong reasons; the supporting cast is awash in traumas related or not; there is more context, but rarely satisfactory closure. And some of this is touched by the over-the-topness of manga, but for once I'm not frustrated: it's the same shojo styling as The Heart of Thomas, exploring suffering through a stylized, romantic lens without sacrificing depth. A mess, certainly, but with intention, care, and deep sympathy.

Current Music: Silhouettes - Kissing Cousins

phys_environment_feed

https://phys.org/news/2026-01-bark-pharmaceutical-residues-wastewater-antibiotics.html

Researchers at the University of Oulu, Finland, have developed a pine-bark–based water-treatment medium that efficiently removes antibiotics as well as residues of blood-pressure and antidepressant medicines from wastewater treatment plant effluent. A new doctoral thesis reports promising results with a simple and low-cost method in which pine bark was modified with iron.

https://phys.org/news/2026-01-bark-pharmaceutical-residues-wastewater-antibiotics.html

scalziwhatever_feed

Posted by John Scalzi

https://whatever.scalzi.com/2026/01/21/the-music-studio-2-0/

https://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=59188

Some of you will remember that as a pandemic project I went and made a music studio in my basement. It was a lot of fun, and very cool — but too cool, as our basement is endemically cold, even in the summer, and spending more than a half hour in there is liable to set one’s teeth a-chatter. It ended up limiting the amount I used my studio area; for the last in year in particular I was more likely to record something at my kitchen’s center island than I was in my studio space in my basement.

Fast forward to today, and now I have a new set-up, in the room that was previously Athena’s bedroom. She doesn’t need the room anymore — she has a whole house now — and the room is nicely heated (and in the summer, cooled) and also literally ten feet from my current home office. I’ve done an initial setup, which you can see above. There’s more to be done, including bringing up some more musical equipment from the basement, most notably the drumset, but the setup here is good enough to start recording.

That is, once I get the current novel done. First things first. I consider this a bit of motivation.

— JS

https://whatever.scalzi.com/2026/01/21/the-music-studio-2-0/

https://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=59188

the_shoshanna

Well, there's flu in my mother's residence and she's recovering from a cold (though says she tested negative for flu and COVID), so the weekend visit with friends is canceled because they can't risk me bringing anything into their space, and the weekdays visit with other friends was already severely cut down because of recent stresses in their lives but now is further reduced to just meeting up for a short walk because they can't risk it either. I do not like this timeline.

(To be clear, I absolutely understand all my friends' reasons and I'm glad they made the calls that are right for them! And we've all planned to see each other when I hope to come down again in April. I'm just sad not to see them 1. at all 2. much now. also I was hoping 1 would want to watch HR with me)

On the other hand, this means I'll be going home before a big storm hits this weekend, which if I'd kept my original schedule might otherwise have ended up delaying me for an extra day, which would then make things tight at home because we're planning to go to Montreal right after I get back. Everything happens for the tolerable in this not yet the shittiest of all possible worlds.

shipperslist

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )

js_thrill

Today's song is Chinese Rifle Song

Watch on YouTube

Nice song, fine annotation (about how Yam, The King of Crops was a pivotal album release for him), but I don't have a lot to say about them. Listened to the song a couple times and enjoyed it, though.

Current Music: Chinese Rifle Song — The Mountain Goats

cyberghostface posting in

scans_daily

( Scans under the cut... )

juushika

Title: A Short Stay in Hell
Author: Steven L. Peck
Published: Strange Violin Editions, 2012 (2011)
Rating: 2.5 of 5
Page Count: 110
Total Page Count: 558,895
Text Number: 2104
Read Because: saw this requested in a fic exchange, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: Not to be glib, but just read Borges. That said, this is short, and less campy than the opening lets on. What it does best is extrapolate scale—massive, horrifying, existential scale, banal yet cosmic. The social element feels written by a straight white man, gestures made at murder cults and the rise of ritual, at the transitory-or-not role of sexual relationships, pretty underwhelming takes, all less successful than the premise itself.

Current Music: Rocky Coast/EDT - The Huntress and the Holder of Hands

trobadora

61% of respondents find shorter fic easier to write than longer! And the majority of respondents mostly write stories between 1 and 10k words. Interestingly, the 10-50k range seems to be the rarest!

For me, I find longer fic easier because I can much more easily come up with ideas for longer stories than shorter. Self-contained small things? I wish I could write them more often! But most story ideas I have want to be longer, alas.

I used to write more shorter fic, but I've mostly lost the knack, possibly because my current fandoms lend themselves to that less? Or it may be me that's changed. *g*

Today's writing

So far I'm failing at gaining any kind of writing momentum this month, but I'm still working on things. A little progress.

Tally

( Days 1-15 )

Day 16:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

carenejeans,

chanter1944,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

goddess47,

luzula,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

trobadora,

ysilme

Day 17:

alightbuthappypen,

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

carenejeans,

chanter1944,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

goddess47,

luzula,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

ysilme

Day 18:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

carenejeans,

chanter1944,

cornerofmadness,

luzula,

goddess47,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

ysilme

Day 19:

alightbuthappypen,

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

carenejeans,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

goddess47,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

ysilme

Day 20:

badly_knitted,

brithistorian,

carenejeans,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

goddess47,

luzula,

sanguinity,

shadaras,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

ysilme

Day 21:

alightbuthappypen,

trobadora,

ysilme

Let me know if I missed anyone! And remember you can drop in or out at any time. :)

sabotabby

I remain awed by, proud of, and scared shitless for my incredible friends in Minnesota, who are fighting on the front line against literal jackbooted thugs. Even if you don't have a personal connection, I'm sure you're also gripped by the news.

Here is how you can help:

A post by

naomikritzer

How to help if you are outside Minnesota.

This also has advice on how to start preparing for if and when this shit comes to your home state.

If you are in Minnesota.

I am also stealing some graphics that

lydamorehouse posted that you can spread around, as long as you credit the artist. Credit where it is known:

By Rin Mix.

By Cas Fern.

Artist unknown but if you find out, let me know and I'll edit it.

Let Minnesota be the graveyard of fascism!

beccaelizabeth

Today I am feeling very accomplished, since Cleaner Day functioned correctly.
All things are Cleaner and I changed the bed sheets for the new duvet and pillow set that match the new pyjamas, so I am aesthetically pleasing.

I can also get visially lost just by staying still but this too is pleasing from certain angles.

The fact all this Cleaner took from 0930 until 2130 with very long breaks for reading books and recharging is Less Pleasing, but now I write it down seems pretty reasonable allocation of effort.

I entirely ignored the internet but did check the BBC headlines quite a bit.
*sigh*

I also tried to listen to music on the youtubes again but it kept on getting stuck and trying to show me thirty seconds of ads every two minutes, or every thirty seconds if the stuck thing happened again. Unusable thing.

BBC Sounds worked better but I got distracted when I had to recharge my phone and forgot I was listening to it.

Modern technology, so helpful.

... and yet, pretty good day.

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Kopal

https://www.themarysue.com/extraordinary-absurdity-guess-who-just-agreed-to-join-trumps-board-of-peace-to-rebuild-gaza-the-man-who-destroyed-gaza/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908925

Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu joins Trump's Board of Peace for Gaza

On Wednesday, Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu accepted Donald Trump’s invitation to join the so-called “Board of Peace” for rebuilding Gaza. The announcement was delivered with straight-faced seriousness by Netanyahu’s office on X. At this point, we can’t help but ask, are these people even hearing themselves?

Israel’s PM office on X wrote on Jan. 21 that Netanyahu will “become a member of the Board of Peace, which is to be comprised of world leaders.” If that sentence made your brain stall for a second, congratulations, you still have functioning moral wiring. Because this isn’t “peace-building,” it’s a PR cleanse wrapped around a power club.

https://www.themarysue.com/extraordinary-absurdity-guess-who-just-agreed-to-join-trumps-board-of-peace-to-rebuild-gaza-the-man-who-destroyed-gaza/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908925

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Sanchari Ghosh

https://www.themarysue.com/donald-trumps-family-cashes-in-1-4-billion-during-his-second-term-but-sure-blame-communism-for-everything/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908936

A New York Times Piece published on Wednesday claims that the Trump family’s collective wealth now stands at a staggering $ 1.4 billion, based only on publicly available data, with the actual numbers expected to be much higher.

A significant number of Americans are infuriated after learning that Donald Trump and his family earned over 1 billion during his second term in office. Why, you ask? Because Trump was amassing wealth while the public was largely struggling under his regime, with some even failing to make ends meet. Remember the cuts to SNAP, or the tariffs on US imports that heavily impacted soybean farmers and cattle ranchers? I don’t think anyone has forgotten that. He was quite indifferent when it came to these decisions, and it turns out it was because he was on a personal journey, one that involved putting more money in his own pocket.

https://www.themarysue.com/donald-trumps-family-cashes-in-1-4-billion-during-his-second-term-but-sure-blame-communism-for-everything/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908936

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Sanchari Ghosh

https://www.themarysue.com/trump-is-basically-making-a-new-nato-but-for-the-bad-guys-with-the-inclusion-of-alexander-lukashenko-trumps-board-of-peace-now-has-two-dictators/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908644

United States President Donald Trump is out here creating his own Avengers, but instead of saving people from perpetual doom, this superhero group will possibly be bringing in more trouble, not just for Americans but for others around the world.

On January 19, 2026, several reports emerged online that suggested that the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, had been invited by Donald Trump to join his Board of Peace, which was “formed to solidify Peace in the Middle East” and “to embark on a bold new approach to resolving Global Conflict!” The X page called Republicans Against Trump even uploaded a picture of the two-page proposal letter that had been sent to the Belarusian president by the White House in Washington, the opening remarks of which read:

https://www.themarysue.com/trump-is-basically-making-a-new-nato-but-for-the-bad-guys-with-the-inclusion-of-alexander-lukashenko-trumps-board-of-peace-now-has-two-dictators/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908644

sage

( books: more Pratchett )

yarning
Went to yarn group Sunday despite an earlier migraine and had a pretty good time. Worked on a donation hat. I've been all hats all the time, working down my yarn stash, as I haven't had any kickbunny sales. I did sell 3 catnip-silvervine stuffed hearts. It's supposed to get down into the teens this weekend, with possible snow. I hope things will be clear for yarn group.

healthcrap
Friday: allergy shot. Tuesday: medical transportation assessment, which went fairly well. I'll hear whether I qualify in 2-3 weeks. Today: pharmacy & first shingles shot. I need to get labs done, but I should wait until the shingles side effects pass.

#resist
https://www.standwithminnesota.com/

I hope all of you are doing well and staying safe if you're in winter storm territory. <333

elisem

After some trouble getting ahold of me, my sister has let me know that our mother died this morning.

(So maybe don't assume I remember anything I'm supposed to remember this week?)
My sister and her husband continue to be awesome in these matters. As does Juan.

OK. Gonna go have food and meds now.

green

I was already having a baaad day and now I just found out that Meg's neurologist isn't going to see her anymore. She's been going to him for 20 years. I keep crying ugh

languagehat_feed

Posted by languagehat

https://languagehat.com/roman-english/

https://languagehat.com/?p=19145

Our nightly reading these days is Paul Scott’s Raj Quartet, which I first read three decades ago and have very much been wanting to revisit; at close to 2,000 pages, it should occupy our bedtimes well into next year. The first novel, The Jewel in the Crown (also the title of the superb television serial made from it), is online at archive.org for anyone who wants to sample it; I thought I’d post this passage for its linguistic interest:

The teacher at the Chillianwallah Bazaar school, whose pupils were all Indian, was a middle-aged, tall, thin, dark-skinned Madrassi Christian, Mr F. Narayan: the F for Francis, after St Francis of Assisi. In his spare time, of which he had a great deal, and to augment his income, of which he had little, Mr Narayan wrote what he called Topics for the local English language weekly newspaper, The Mayapore Gazette. In addition, his services were available as a letter-writer, and these were services used by both his Hindu and Muslim neighbours. He could converse fluendy in Urdu and Hindi and the local vernacular, and wrote an excellent Urdu and Hindi script, as well as his native Tamil and acquired Roman-English.

“Roman-English” doesn’t convey anything to me; I’m guessing it might mean English written in the Roman alphabet, but how else would it be written? All suggestions welcome.

Also, just because it was preying on me and I’m pleased to have solved the puzzle: I’m enjoying my new Blu-ray of Béla Tarr’s Sátántangó, notorious for its 439-minute running time (I’m following my brother’s advice and taking it in chunks, easy to do since it’s divided into twelve parts), and today I watched the sixth part, “A pók dolga II (Ördögcsecs, sátántangó) [The Job of the Spider II (The Devil’s Tit, Satan’s Tango)],” which takes place in a bar where everyone is getting increasingly drunk. One character, Kelemen, keeps repeating the same phrases over and over until you want to slug him, and the most frequently repeated was subtitled “I was plodding and plodding” (it’s the first thing you hear in this YouTube clip). Of course I wanted to know what the Hungarian was, and I think I’ve finally figured out it’s vágtattam (see the conjugation here), which means ‘I galloped.’ I don’t know why the translator went with “plodding,” but it seems misleading.

Update. It would appear rather to be baktattam, from baktat ‘plod, trudge, walk slowly’; see Xerîb’s comment below.

https://languagehat.com/roman-english/

https://languagehat.com/?p=19145

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Charlotte Colombo

https://www.themarysue.com/garage-swimsuit-dirty/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908762

woman shares swimsuit order issue (l) green swimsuit (r)

A shopper was left horrified when she unboxed a swimsuit from Garage. And it’s not the kind of thing you can unsee, either.

The viral clip, which has amassed 888,500 views, shows TikToker Annabelle (@annabelle095) unboxing her delivery from clothing outlet Garage.

https://www.themarysue.com/garage-swimsuit-dirty/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908762

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Sandeep Sandhu

https://www.themarysue.com/even-tennis-legends-are-on-the-heated-rivalry-kick/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908908

At this point, finding someone who isn’t obsessing over Heated Rivalry is like looking for the Loch Ness monster. There’s a small chance they exist, but logic suggests otherwise.

So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that fans of the steamy Crave show (on Max in the US) come from all walks of life, but even so the latest icon to show her enthusiasm for the hockey romance drama is quite the name: tennis legend Billie Jean King.

https://www.themarysue.com/even-tennis-legends-are-on-the-heated-rivalry-kick/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908908

the_mary_sue_feed

Posted by Teresia Gray

https://www.themarysue.com/alamo-drafthouse-phone-ordering-changes-explained/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908919

Alamo Drafthouse just announced a change that will have some fans up in arms. The beloved theater chain is reportedly moving away from the paper and pen style concessions ordering method that many associate with Alamo.

This policy, as it existed, helped reinforce Alamo Drafthouse’s strict No Phones during screenings policies. If you’ve been to a movie theater since 2020, you’re no doubt aware that people are more lax about phone usage in dark theaters than they’ve been in the previous 20 years. Folks got used to being inside and forgot their manners completely in the ensuing time since 2020.

https://www.themarysue.com/alamo-drafthouse-phone-ordering-changes-explained/

https://www.themarysue.com/?p=908919

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Larry Hammer

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flemmings - (no subject)
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loganberrybunny - The Hippodrome. No horses in sight, boo
xinger - 乐观的魔道祖师：忘羡瀑布｜wangxian waterfall
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the_mary_sue_feed - Florida woman’s brand-new cherry Coach bag ruins her shirt. She can’t believe the email Coach sent h
the_mary_sue_feed - The 10 Best Anime Romance Movies of All Time
the_mary_sue_feed - Jenny Slate Does Not Have Kind Words About Justin Baldoni
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phys_environment_feed - New analysis suggests carbon markets must account for storage duration in pricing removals
ysabetwordsmith - Food
jadelennox - In this essay I will
juushika - Manga Review: A Cruel God Reigns by Moto Hagio
phys_environment_feed - Pine bark removes pharmaceutical residues from wastewater—an affordable way to keep antibiotics out
scalziwhatever_feed - The Music Studio 2.0
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shipperslist - How to Get a Girlfriend (When You’re a Terrifying Monster) by Marie Cardno
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cyberghostface in scans_daily - Black Panther: Intergalactic #2
juushika - Book Review: A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck
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the_mary_sue_feed - ‘Extraordinary absurdity’: Guess who just agreed to join Trump’s Board of Peace to rebuild Gaza? The
the_mary_sue_feed - Donald Trump’s family cashes in $1.4 billion during his second term — but sure, blame communism for
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languagehat_feed - Roman-English.
the_mary_sue_feed - Woman unboxes swimsuit from Garage. Then she notices she got more than she bargained for—and is imme
the_mary_sue_feed - Even Tennis Legends Are on the ‘Heated Rivalry’ Kick
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