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2020 may have noticed I haven't had quite enough bad luck yet and decided to sprinkle some my way. So, the re-examination of the Jeep troubles resulted in a much higher bill. Then I got a fever over the weekend -- about 102 -- that lasted into Tuesday. That was made more fun by a water main bursting in the neighborhood so that I had no water for much of Monday. Tuesday I was feeling better to work, so I was trying to do that in the afternoon and then... something went wrong with the internet in the neighborhood so that was mostly a bust. I was trying to minimize how much PTO I need to use in case it's COVID... because, by the county guidelines, if you have two symptoms then you can't go to work until you're cleared. And, of course, you don't just have a fever alone. So body aches and headache are both on the list of symptoms.
I wasn't able to get scheduled for a test until this afternoon, but it was surprisingly not unpleasant. They used a different nose swab than the one everyone said was super uncomfortable. (this was fifteen rotations inside each nostril and not far in at all) They say I will have results within 24 hours, so hopefully it's negative, my headache is gone tomorrow, and I can work on Friday! I get antsy when I can't leave the house.
On the other hand, a friend joked that if I DO have COVID, then I've skated by with an incredibly mild case and I'll supposedly be immune for a little bit and then I can actually go to the zoo and botanic gardens and a brewery and...
Not that the week was all bad. Despite being fevered, I had a bunch of online meetings. I know people don't like those, but these all were pretty fun and/or interesting. Monday morning we had a work book club where some of us read Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. The discussion was great and I definitely appreciate a novel that makes you wonder what side of the line between "crazy, inbred European colonizer wannabes" or "chthonic malevolent god" the horror will land on. Some of the book club members were disappointed that the book didn't have more Mexico in it, but I thought it was brilliant. Sure, it's set in Mexico and she could have dealt with Mexican horror (as she does in some of her other work), but here she was playing with classic horror -- Poe and Lovecraft and Blackwood and friends -- where so much of evil has to do with bloodlines and lineages. And, of course, those lineages are tainted by things... poverty or "duskiness" -- whether native or Italian or "gyspy" or whatever, depending on the line that author drew between "us" and "them." Or, I guess, in all reality, mostly likely between "them" and "us" because I'm certainly not on the purebred, pale European side of the chasm!
Later that day we had a virtual meeting with the Committee. Typically, those who go to to our midyear conference say hi there and the rest of don't meet until the winter one. Obviously, both of those were cancelled. So, particularly as we have a lot of first years on the committee, we decided to have an online meet and greet and it was lovely and did a great job of making us understand each other better. I think every year I've been on the committee there is at least one person who makes people nervous because we fear they'll be... difficult... because of how they come across online. But every time, once we meet face to face, all is good. Well, barring individual conflicts, but as far as the committee going smoothly and getting along as a group it works.
The other meetings I had this week were more along the lines of meeting people pushing products on us, but the ones this week were actually fun, interesting, and things I'd like us to use.
The kitten, Miles (Vorkosigan) MacGuffin, continues to be a little sweetheart. Sometimes a bit too much, because I don't always need a cat in my face. (he's decided he wants to be a shoulder cat) He might be part skunk, though, because, oof, those kitten farts... death... He and Deimos are cordial if they MUST meet to spend time with me, but primarily Miles MacGuffin stays in the basement and Deimos stays on the upper floor. There have been some cuddle attempts from the kitten, but Deimos remains aloof... other than the time he grabbed Miles' head with both paws and pretended to bite him top center. So I guess even if they don't decide to be cuddle buddies, we don't seem to be heading to a Western "this house isn't big enough for the both of us" situation. Mr. MacGuffin is also fascinated by the ferrets. He won't get too close, but when they are shut in their cage for the night he sometimes just sits nearby, head cocked, staring. You can totally see his little brain trying to figure out what they are.
And really, I guess that's about it for excitement this week. Otherwise it's reading (House of Whispers by Laura Purcell and some excellent queer-touched Weird West tales recommended by Charles Payseur), some tv watching (Lovecraft Country) and some video games (Animal Crossing, Divinity: Original Sin, and The Missing: J.J. MacField and the Island of Memories). That last one... Maybe I shouldn't have played all in one day when my fever was at its highest. Ha. So, it's billed as being kind of like Limbo or Inside, which are two games I absolutely love. Morbid, mysterious, fun puzzle games with a narrative to puzzle out. And, this hits all of those. Some of the movement and pacing is a bit wonky and it is... disturbing. I'm not sure I would have kept going if I hadn't been unwilling to get up because my head was feeling so wonky. In the game, J.J. dies pretty early on and gets this mysterious ability to regenerate. But to solve certain puzzles, you sometimes (and increasingly often) have to injure her to do so. Like, maybe if you're more than a head you can't fit where you need to go or you need to set yourself on fire so you can go burn something down. And it isn't pleasant for her, so definitely was for me. I cringed a lot. But, I guess, in addition to the fever immobility, I also had an inkling of the end game and thought perhaps there was a point to the self injury. And the game mostly delivered there. So I'd recommend it, but only to very particular people. The content warnings are certainly important, but it's been interesting to see a number of queer voices find the game quite cathartic. (and heart wrenching)
I wasn't able to get scheduled for a test until this afternoon, but it was surprisingly not unpleasant. They used a different nose swab than the one everyone said was super uncomfortable. (this was fifteen rotations inside each nostril and not far in at all) They say I will have results within 24 hours, so hopefully it's negative, my headache is gone tomorrow, and I can work on Friday! I get antsy when I can't leave the house.
On the other hand, a friend joked that if I DO have COVID, then I've skated by with an incredibly mild case and I'll supposedly be immune for a little bit and then I can actually go to the zoo and botanic gardens and a brewery and...
Not that the week was all bad. Despite being fevered, I had a bunch of online meetings. I know people don't like those, but these all were pretty fun and/or interesting. Monday morning we had a work book club where some of us read Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. The discussion was great and I definitely appreciate a novel that makes you wonder what side of the line between "crazy, inbred European colonizer wannabes" or "chthonic malevolent god" the horror will land on. Some of the book club members were disappointed that the book didn't have more Mexico in it, but I thought it was brilliant. Sure, it's set in Mexico and she could have dealt with Mexican horror (as she does in some of her other work), but here she was playing with classic horror -- Poe and Lovecraft and Blackwood and friends -- where so much of evil has to do with bloodlines and lineages. And, of course, those lineages are tainted by things... poverty or "duskiness" -- whether native or Italian or "gyspy" or whatever, depending on the line that author drew between "us" and "them." Or, I guess, in all reality, mostly likely between "them" and "us" because I'm certainly not on the purebred, pale European side of the chasm!
Later that day we had a virtual meeting with the Committee. Typically, those who go to to our midyear conference say hi there and the rest of don't meet until the winter one. Obviously, both of those were cancelled. So, particularly as we have a lot of first years on the committee, we decided to have an online meet and greet and it was lovely and did a great job of making us understand each other better. I think every year I've been on the committee there is at least one person who makes people nervous because we fear they'll be... difficult... because of how they come across online. But every time, once we meet face to face, all is good. Well, barring individual conflicts, but as far as the committee going smoothly and getting along as a group it works.
The other meetings I had this week were more along the lines of meeting people pushing products on us, but the ones this week were actually fun, interesting, and things I'd like us to use.
The kitten, Miles (Vorkosigan) MacGuffin, continues to be a little sweetheart. Sometimes a bit too much, because I don't always need a cat in my face. (he's decided he wants to be a shoulder cat) He might be part skunk, though, because, oof, those kitten farts... death... He and Deimos are cordial if they MUST meet to spend time with me, but primarily Miles MacGuffin stays in the basement and Deimos stays on the upper floor. There have been some cuddle attempts from the kitten, but Deimos remains aloof... other than the time he grabbed Miles' head with both paws and pretended to bite him top center. So I guess even if they don't decide to be cuddle buddies, we don't seem to be heading to a Western "this house isn't big enough for the both of us" situation. Mr. MacGuffin is also fascinated by the ferrets. He won't get too close, but when they are shut in their cage for the night he sometimes just sits nearby, head cocked, staring. You can totally see his little brain trying to figure out what they are.
And really, I guess that's about it for excitement this week. Otherwise it's reading (House of Whispers by Laura Purcell and some excellent queer-touched Weird West tales recommended by Charles Payseur), some tv watching (Lovecraft Country) and some video games (Animal Crossing, Divinity: Original Sin, and The Missing: J.J. MacField and the Island of Memories). That last one... Maybe I shouldn't have played all in one day when my fever was at its highest. Ha. So, it's billed as being kind of like Limbo or Inside, which are two games I absolutely love. Morbid, mysterious, fun puzzle games with a narrative to puzzle out. And, this hits all of those. Some of the movement and pacing is a bit wonky and it is... disturbing. I'm not sure I would have kept going if I hadn't been unwilling to get up because my head was feeling so wonky. In the game, J.J. dies pretty early on and gets this mysterious ability to regenerate. But to solve certain puzzles, you sometimes (and increasingly often) have to injure her to do so. Like, maybe if you're more than a head you can't fit where you need to go or you need to set yourself on fire so you can go burn something down. And it isn't pleasant for her, so definitely was for me. I cringed a lot. But, I guess, in addition to the fever immobility, I also had an inkling of the end game and thought perhaps there was a point to the self injury. And the game mostly delivered there. So I'd recommend it, but only to very particular people. The content warnings are certainly important, but it's been interesting to see a number of queer voices find the game quite cathartic. (and heart wrenching)
no subject
Date: 2020-09-24 07:01 pm (UTC)From:Copper used to do that to Rachel when she was bugging him. It was his way of telling her to stop. XD First he would honk her nose and gently pop his claws out and if that didn't work, he'd grab her head and put his teeth on her. Then we'd hear "I'm sorry. I'll stop. Okay? I'm sorry." hahaha. She learned eventually. ;)
no subject
Date: 2020-09-24 07:39 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2020-09-27 09:56 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2020-09-30 09:12 pm (UTC)From:I hope they do a really good job with the Mexican Gothic tv show!
no subject
Date: 2020-10-01 01:13 am (UTC)From:Me too!