Pronoun Trouble

Happy Birthday to me, yay!

Dad got me the picture book, "The Bakery Dragon", as seen on Tumblr.

Mom got me season 10 of Bob's Burgers.

My brother's family got me something that's still in the mail 😂

And Dreamwidth got me my new mood themes going live!

...Okay, they're not technically live yet exactly (they'll show up soon!), and it's a complete coincidence that dw_dev posted the code tour on my birthday, but I'm counting it!

My laptop is giving me some minor issues; it's been losing internet connection reliably, usually within an hour of me starting up, and the only solution I've found so far is to restart it completely.

This has prompted me to look up exactly when I originally got my current laptop, and the answer is May, 2019. I've had this laptop for five-and-a-half years, and this is the first time it's given me any problems that have made me consider replacing it.

I'd say that's a damn good run!

(It's also right on time for me to make a birthday and/or Xmas request 👀 I may bring this up with my parents...)

Right, so, I've kept contact with some of my old AnimeIowa friends after the whole Mask Fiasco of 2022, right? Did some art for Accessibility Passes, maybe made a suggestion here or there, sold some stuff in the art show this past year. One of my AI friends commissioned a crocheted plush Minion from me this year to give to a family member for Xmas, so I pulled one together (that actually turned out pretty fantastic, NGL) and delivered it to her when she was in town for a convention meeting last Saturday.

I've been planning to rejoin AnimeIowa staff for the 2025 convention pretty much since I quit in 2022. I've gone back and forth a couple of times, but I do genuinely miss hanging out with my AI friends and helping make the convention work. The 2024 election results (and knowing some of what RFK Jr wants to do with US health stuff, as well as what Trump may let him get away with) have made me a little bit shaky about that, because I quit over disease transmission concerns in 2022; I was still leaning towards rejoining, except, well.

I saw one of the biggest anti-mask people when I went to drop off the minion; one of the people who made the decision (without telling staff at large, let alone announcing to attendees, vendors, or even guests of honor) that the con should go masks-optional in 2022, and one who I generally found a little intimidating even before everything that went down. I already knew that the Health Officer who helped push the decision was probably still on staff somewhere, if not necessarily as a Con Exec/ConCom/Con CEO/what-have-you; I know I can at least be civil with her in person and pretend that nothing has happened.

I don't know if I can do that with this other guy. I also don't know what sort of position he holds in staff at the moment; if he's in a position of particular power... IDK.

I'd love to shift focus and switch to Wiscon, but I tried that and I failed. One of the key points about AnimeIowa staff for me was that I would actually leave the house and go to in-person meetings and hang out with people there, and if I have to deal with too many of the people who made me feel like absolute dog shit for trying to make sure that the 2022 con didn't turn into a superspreader event, let alone for not being told before they rolled out the decision, I just...

Yeah. I dunno.

1) Eye doctor (general checkup appointment) Done!
2) Try to relax while the dilation drops wear off
3) Cry (can be done at the same time as 2)
4) Nap
5) Regroup, revitalize, prepare to defend

News: "It seems like Iowa might go blue for this election!"

Me: *salutes* "I'm doing my part!"



(It would be really, really cool if Iowa went blue this year. It's gone blue before in my lifetime, but like. Not since I've been able to vote.)

Found on a scrap of paper when I was cleaning my room; I don't want to lose it forever, but I also don't want it laying around anymore, so preserving it on the internet it is!

( Just a little Miraculous Ladybug tidbit, featuring Alya and Nino, talking about their best friends' love life )

Oh so this is what it's like to have AO3 start acting up when I'm in the early stages of a new hyperfocus/special interest.

Yeah, I get why people hate that.

Edit: Oh wow, that cleared up in a hurry. I barely had time to gripe about it!

Welp, not complaining about this outcome, at any rate.

Oh right, I committed to posting publicly once a week; private posts where I store tidbits I copy-pasted from ebooks on my phone aren't the same thing...

Not a whole lot to report. I'm spending more time at my makeshift desk with my laptop instead of lounging in bed with it, which is an improvement; I do think I need a better computer chair sooner rather than later, though, preferably with at least one arm rest. I don't usually care much for arm rests, on account of having a good deal of mass around my middle, but, well. My left hand's pinky finger and sometimes ring finger are occasionally going a little numb, and switching to the new desk setup is the only major change I can think of in the past while that might be causing it.

In addition to a proper computer chair, I'm thinking of asking for a tablet for my birthday and/or Xmas. Used would be fine, I just want something I can use to browse AO3 instead of my laptop, since I'm back in New Fandom Hyperfocus Mode. That might also help with the hand issue, IDK.

Still getting absolute crap hours at work, with no notice from the Precinct Election Official people; it seems like I was supposed to get an availability survey at some point, but didn't? Early voting started half a week ago, so I'll be sending an email asking about that later tonight.

I think that's it for now; time to draft that email!

Egads, how is it already Friday?


Mom and Molly made it back safely and have settled right back in. Molly is currently snuggled in the blankets at the foot of my bed, because she gets Lonely when her favorite person (my mom) is asleep/otherwise unavailable.


Room cleaning saga got some very good work done; I managed to clear off most of a tall table construct on the side of my room and added a new bookshelf there, both of which are pretty great. The bookshelf has allowed me to relocate a lot of DVDs and some books that I had piling up in various places; things still aren't completely organized (another bookshelf wouldn't hurt, truth be told), but they're much better than they were.

On top of that, the table space that I cleared is a great location for my laptop! Which was actually a pretty major motivation in getting that space cleared off; the built-in trackpad buttons are starting to go a little haywire, so attaching an old mouse and using that instead helps a lot. I haven't been able to make myself move my laptop over there more permanently yet (baby steps!), but I have actually been using it, rather than not using it at all, the previous state when that table was elbow-deep in Stuff. Today I picked up a tall office chair to use with it secondhand, which is an improvement over the spare kitchen stool I had been using previously. It's not my ideal office chair (I want one with breathable mesh instead of pleather cushions), but for a measly $8, I'm happy enough to make do.

I've still got stuff to clear out from under the table, and I could definitely stand to do some digging in both my crafting corner and in my closet, but my room is still looking a lot better!

The weather was very nice today, and I was craving some exercise, so I decided to walk to the pharmacy to pick up my prescription.

Honestly, it was a fantastic walk, I'd totally do it again. I may yet (though definitely not tonight).

Tomorrow, Dad and I are planning to take my brother's kids to play at the park for our family time, weather permitting. I think they'll like it, though the bathroom situation worries me a bit; elder nibling is potty training, so we'll probably bring some backup pants Just In Case. Hopefully, the near-by swimming center will let us take him in to use the toilet if he says he needs to go.


And that's it; that's the post.