every day is a new, bright trauma
My mailbox contained the DMV renewal stuff for Roland's tags, so now I need to get to the DEQ for emissions testing, and pay a whacking huge fee (they've increased it substantially). That'll be fun. But! There was also a cheerful postcard from 
kaytee4ever and a beautiful handmade card from
saffronhouse. When it was so hot I couldn't brain or get organized, so I didn't do any cards over the weekend - maybe I'll write up some to throw in the box on Thursday.
In the 80s I met David through an AIDS group; we weren't besties, but he was a nice guy, and we met for dinner occasionally. It wasn't until years later that I learned he'd been hospitalized as a teen to 'cure' him of being gay, including ECT (which fucked him up, but didn't work). The History of Getting the Gay Out - When non-conforming identities were considered a medical disease, psychiatrists used medical treatments, such as electroconvulsive shock, lobotomy, drugs, and psychoanalysis to cure or prevent "deviancy." Psychologists in the 1960s and 1970s described being LGBTQ+ as an attachment disorder-that people were attached to inappropriate erotic or sexual desires. They believed that using aversions (such as electrical shock stimuli) could modify behavior and lead to heterosexuality and "cure." It did not work.
This is good coverage of recent weather here, with photos of frying an egg on the sidewalk. Also a bit of history of global warming/climate change: I Moved to Portland Because It Seemed Like a Safe Bet in the Face of Climate Change. I Was Naive
A dispatch from under the heat dome that shattered temperature records in the Pacific Northwest
Portland is a leafy, tree-festooned city that sits further north than either Toronto or Montreal. A typical hot summer day might spike into the 90s, but this week the city experienced the kind of radiant, baking temperatures and convection-oven winds more typical of Death Valley. A rare high-pressure formation blocked the region’s evening coastal breezes, forming a “heat dome” over Oregon and Washington. The previous record high temperature for Portland was 107, set in 1965 and tied in 1981. On Saturday, the mercury hit 108. On Sunday, it spiked to 112. And then yesterday, 116.
Turn a frown upside down with these amoosing cats
oh, ACME, never change! (it won't). Back in April there was an e-mail with a list of video trainings that needed to be completed by mid-May. There were several I couldn't figure out how to register for; I e-mailed the training go-to person and worked on the ones I could (never got a response from her). I managed to get certificates for all but two - I'd watched those two several times but could never figure out how to register so I could get a certificate to prove I'd done them. I think I called and left her a VM, but again didn't get a response. Shortly before the deadline I made copies for myself and sent hard copies to that training person, with a note explaining I'd been unable to register for certificates on two, but again never heard back from her. That was over a month ago
When I went in this morning there was an e-mail from her saying I was missing trainings, but not indicating which. It was dated Monday, and there was a new deadline of the 30th (even if I were working fulltime, giving me only two days isn't cool). I called a couple times, getting her VM each time but getting no response before I left the office (a bit early). I dug out my copies and the note I'd sent, e-mailed Em3 explaining the course of events, and then e-mailing the training person. I guess there were some phone exchanges between the two of them, and Em3 called me in the evening asking me to send what I had to her again - no explanation for why she didn't respond to my initial query. So Thursday I'll scan everything and send it to them both. Sadly, I have a feeling I may have to watch the (really boring) videos again, if someone can explain how I can register to get the damn certificates.
This tweet from a meteorologist pretty much sums it up: “We’ve left the era of fucking around, and we’re now entering the era of finding out.
Question of the Day
Who taught you how to drive?
I took a Driver's Ed course in high school, which involved some road time (with a really jerky instructor) but the bulk of my 'practice' time was with mom. dad really didn't have the patience to deal with learning drivers
I've always liked Han, and this interview/profile of Sung Kang (with lots of 'looking good' photos) is terrific. Sung Kang's Road Home: How His Fast & Furious Character Became a Lightning Rod - More important to Kang than getting back to the films was the outpouring of support, which made him realize that he’d been thinking about things all wrong. “I used to keep arm's length about talking about Fast & Furious because I wanted to be taken seriously as an actor,” says Kang. Now, he thinks playing Han has made him a better person. “When I was younger, I was insecure about myself and my abilities. As I've gotten older, you know, you make mistakes and then you learn things to build your character and the person that you want to be. You know, we're all playing versions of ourselves. And then we wake up in the morning to play the, you know, the TV version of yourself. And Han is cool because it makes you accountable.”
Mom called literally as I was pulling into my parking space - I guess she doesn't pay attention to the hours I've been working, as she opened with "are you at home?" When I called her back 20 minutes later (needed to pee, change clothes & grab a cool drink) she was basically checking on me after the extreme heat. She then spent ages fretting about how to get me AC, as Eugene's weather person was foretelling it would happen again (which yeah, sadly it undoubtedly will). It's nice she cares, but it's not on her to resolve all my problems, right? And then she talked a lot about getting all the framed pictures out of the garage (dad hadn't wanted to hang anything) so she can decide what to hang and what to discard.
It was a minorly frustrating day at ACME all told, in addition to the whole training thing. I really wanted to stay in bed, as temps dipped into the 60s so sleeping was actually possible last night! But a parent was supposed to come in around 10:00 to drop off some stuff, and so I needed to be there - of course, she never showed nor called. And IT spent some time doing something under my counter, which interfered with my ability to do anything at my computer. He also roamed about the building doing whatever, but that didn't impact my own productivity.
There were no signs of buckling roads on my commute, though I did hit a new major pothole on the way home. It definitely hadn't been there last week! Hopefully I can avoid it in the future. Due to the still high temperatures, and the likelihood of fire due to the ongoing drought, the City of Portland has banned all fireworks through the Fourth - legal & illegal. I wonder how many people will pay attention? Better be prepared for Olivier to be freaked out to some extent in a few days. Actually, I hard a couple of major bangs last night, around midnight - not extended, but those isolated noises were definitely loud.
Black Books / Harry Potter crossover fic rec:
A Plague On Both Your Houses by
FayJay
Summary: in which Bernard is highly disgruntled to realise that he is in the process of losing his minion to the wretched Rowena, but then is distracted when he comes into his inheritance.
I'm not entirely sure how I missed this back in the day, but I'm glad I stumbled across it, as it's pretty fantastic
kaytee4ever and a beautiful handmade card from
saffronhouse. When it was so hot I couldn't brain or get organized, so I didn't do any cards over the weekend - maybe I'll write up some to throw in the box on Thursday.
In the 80s I met David through an AIDS group; we weren't besties, but he was a nice guy, and we met for dinner occasionally. It wasn't until years later that I learned he'd been hospitalized as a teen to 'cure' him of being gay, including ECT (which fucked him up, but didn't work). The History of Getting the Gay Out - When non-conforming identities were considered a medical disease, psychiatrists used medical treatments, such as electroconvulsive shock, lobotomy, drugs, and psychoanalysis to cure or prevent "deviancy." Psychologists in the 1960s and 1970s described being LGBTQ+ as an attachment disorder-that people were attached to inappropriate erotic or sexual desires. They believed that using aversions (such as electrical shock stimuli) could modify behavior and lead to heterosexuality and "cure." It did not work.
This is good coverage of recent weather here, with photos of frying an egg on the sidewalk. Also a bit of history of global warming/climate change: I Moved to Portland Because It Seemed Like a Safe Bet in the Face of Climate Change. I Was Naive
A dispatch from under the heat dome that shattered temperature records in the Pacific Northwest
Portland is a leafy, tree-festooned city that sits further north than either Toronto or Montreal. A typical hot summer day might spike into the 90s, but this week the city experienced the kind of radiant, baking temperatures and convection-oven winds more typical of Death Valley. A rare high-pressure formation blocked the region’s evening coastal breezes, forming a “heat dome” over Oregon and Washington. The previous record high temperature for Portland was 107, set in 1965 and tied in 1981. On Saturday, the mercury hit 108. On Sunday, it spiked to 112. And then yesterday, 116.
Turn a frown upside down with these amoosing cats
oh, ACME, never change! (it won't). Back in April there was an e-mail with a list of video trainings that needed to be completed by mid-May. There were several I couldn't figure out how to register for; I e-mailed the training go-to person and worked on the ones I could (never got a response from her). I managed to get certificates for all but two - I'd watched those two several times but could never figure out how to register so I could get a certificate to prove I'd done them. I think I called and left her a VM, but again didn't get a response. Shortly before the deadline I made copies for myself and sent hard copies to that training person, with a note explaining I'd been unable to register for certificates on two, but again never heard back from her. That was over a month ago
When I went in this morning there was an e-mail from her saying I was missing trainings, but not indicating which. It was dated Monday, and there was a new deadline of the 30th (even if I were working fulltime, giving me only two days isn't cool). I called a couple times, getting her VM each time but getting no response before I left the office (a bit early). I dug out my copies and the note I'd sent, e-mailed Em3 explaining the course of events, and then e-mailing the training person. I guess there were some phone exchanges between the two of them, and Em3 called me in the evening asking me to send what I had to her again - no explanation for why she didn't respond to my initial query. So Thursday I'll scan everything and send it to them both. Sadly, I have a feeling I may have to watch the (really boring) videos again, if someone can explain how I can register to get the damn certificates.
This tweet from a meteorologist pretty much sums it up: “We’ve left the era of fucking around, and we’re now entering the era of finding out.
Question of the Day
Who taught you how to drive?
I took a Driver's Ed course in high school, which involved some road time (with a really jerky instructor) but the bulk of my 'practice' time was with mom. dad really didn't have the patience to deal with learning drivers
I've always liked Han, and this interview/profile of Sung Kang (with lots of 'looking good' photos) is terrific. Sung Kang's Road Home: How His Fast & Furious Character Became a Lightning Rod - More important to Kang than getting back to the films was the outpouring of support, which made him realize that he’d been thinking about things all wrong. “I used to keep arm's length about talking about Fast & Furious because I wanted to be taken seriously as an actor,” says Kang. Now, he thinks playing Han has made him a better person. “When I was younger, I was insecure about myself and my abilities. As I've gotten older, you know, you make mistakes and then you learn things to build your character and the person that you want to be. You know, we're all playing versions of ourselves. And then we wake up in the morning to play the, you know, the TV version of yourself. And Han is cool because it makes you accountable.”
Mom called literally as I was pulling into my parking space - I guess she doesn't pay attention to the hours I've been working, as she opened with "are you at home?" When I called her back 20 minutes later (needed to pee, change clothes & grab a cool drink) she was basically checking on me after the extreme heat. She then spent ages fretting about how to get me AC, as Eugene's weather person was foretelling it would happen again (which yeah, sadly it undoubtedly will). It's nice she cares, but it's not on her to resolve all my problems, right? And then she talked a lot about getting all the framed pictures out of the garage (dad hadn't wanted to hang anything) so she can decide what to hang and what to discard.
It was a minorly frustrating day at ACME all told, in addition to the whole training thing. I really wanted to stay in bed, as temps dipped into the 60s so sleeping was actually possible last night! But a parent was supposed to come in around 10:00 to drop off some stuff, and so I needed to be there - of course, she never showed nor called. And IT spent some time doing something under my counter, which interfered with my ability to do anything at my computer. He also roamed about the building doing whatever, but that didn't impact my own productivity.
There were no signs of buckling roads on my commute, though I did hit a new major pothole on the way home. It definitely hadn't been there last week! Hopefully I can avoid it in the future. Due to the still high temperatures, and the likelihood of fire due to the ongoing drought, the City of Portland has banned all fireworks through the Fourth - legal & illegal. I wonder how many people will pay attention? Better be prepared for Olivier to be freaked out to some extent in a few days. Actually, I hard a couple of major bangs last night, around midnight - not extended, but those isolated noises were definitely loud.
Black Books / Harry Potter crossover fic rec:
A Plague On Both Your Houses by
FayJay
Summary: in which Bernard is highly disgruntled to realise that he is in the process of losing his minion to the wretched Rowena, but then is distracted when he comes into his inheritance.
I'm not entirely sure how I missed this back in the day, but I'm glad I stumbled across it, as it's pretty fantastic